


I Trusted You, I Still Do

by littendeservesbetter



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Angst, AniPoke, But it gets better I swear, Canon Rewrite, F/M, Fluff, M/M, Pokemon, Pokemon Anime - Freeform, Pokemon Sun and Moon, Ultra Beasts (Pokemon), a few ocs but they don't play too much of a role, aight i'm done here, also there's burnet x kukui somewhere in this fic, bc i want to give them more quality time before kukui proposes, have fun, i just think it'd be more realistic, if your trustedpartner fic doesn't have the word 'trust' SOMEWHERE in it, pokeani, poor gladion just needs a break, then is it really trustedpartner-
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:21:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 22,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27575111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littendeservesbetter/pseuds/littendeservesbetter
Summary: Silvally let out an angry cry, leaping at Nihilego. It grabbed onto Gladion’s crimson bag, snapping the bag off of Gladion’s waist due to the sudden force. Silvally fell to the floor with the bag, and the Ultra Beast pulled away like it was nothing, heading straight towards the closing Ultra Wormhole.The last thing Ash saw was one small, weak smile that Gladion had directed straight at him before he was ultimately dragged into the wormhole, disappearing in an instant.“Gladion! GLADION! BIG BROTHER!”-Or, Gladion gets captured by Nihilego instead of Lusamine, and shit goes down from there.
Relationships: Burnet-hakase | Professor Burnet/Kukui-hakase | Professior Kukui (background), Gladio | Gladion/Satoshi | Ash Ketchum
Comments: 28
Kudos: 107





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i need to stop publishing new WIPs and actually work on finishing my old ones  
> ...................................................  
> jk no i don't
> 
> but anyway i've had this idea in my head for SO long if i didn't get something down i think i would've exploded. so take this.  
> surprisingly, i already have about 80% of this fic done and written, so no worries about publishing!! i'm honestly excited for this so- yeah. enjoy :)

Ultra Beasts were dangerous. 

Gladion knew that, having seen Nihilego capture his sister and almost drag her into an Ultra Wormhole when they were mere kids. He could still remember it vividly, her screams of fear and pain as she pleaded and begged for him to help. Gladion — only eight and completely helpless — nearly lost his sister. Nihilego was dangerous, and so were all other Ultra Beasts. 

Ultra Beasts were sweet and harmless. 

Ash knew that, after having spent so much time with Nebby after swearing to protect it. The way its face would light up every time someone offered it star candy, the way it giggled and gurgled and cried like a newborn. It got along so well with everyone. Nebby was adorable and deserved love, just like every other Pokémon did. 

The two didn’t get along that well over their contradicting opinions. They had completely different experiences with Ultra Beasts, after all. Gladion couldn’t understand how or why Ash let his guard down around an Ultra Beast — even Silvally was frightened for Arceus’s sake — while Ash could not understand why Gladion was so close-minded and unaccepting about the Very Harmless Nebby. Still, the two quickly got over it and shoved the topic aside. 

Yet, right at this moment, the topic was in dire need of attending to. The group watched in horror as the white creature wormed out of the hole, long limbs extending when it was finally free. 

“There it is, Lusamine! It’s UB01 Symbiont!”

Faba’s apparent delightfulness at seeing the foul creature made Gladion’s blood boil. Didn’t he remember the trauma he caused Lillie the last time he summoned this Ultra Beast? How Ultra Beasts tore their family apart, causing his father to disappear and probably die? It made him scowl that Faba thought so highly of this stupid creature. 

Despite that, Gladion couldn’t deny that Nihilego was beautiful. It had a sense of charm and elegance — swaying around in the air, stars and glitters dotting its transparent head and legs. It had a magnetic pull to it, dangerous but charismatic. Yet, with all its beauty and radiance, it stared down at them with such _arrogance_ , it made him way more uncomfortable than he liked, though he loathed to admit. 

Gladion glanced over at his mother, annoyance increasing when he saw the childlike smile on her face. The Aether President quickly snapped out of it, telling Faba to ‘open his eyes’, though Gladion knew how much she secretly wanted this. Her fascination with them made her this way. Her husband’s disappearance was not enough to make her hate Ultra Beasts. 

Ash pulled his attention away from the chrysalis-like thing in his hands, nodding at Pikachu. Though before he could do anything, Lusamine and Gladion acted. However, neither Clefable nor Silvally could inflict even a tiny scratch on the Ultra Beast. The raven-haired trainer watched in horror as Gladion flew backwards, body slamming into the metal bars along with Silvally. 

“ _Gladion_ _!_ ” His family yelled, Ash unable to speak from the shock. The blonde’s grunt of pain made him wince. His heart twisted for the boy, and it added to his determination. 

“Quick Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!”

“Pika-chuuu!”

Yet, the electric mouse still got smacked down, making Ash rush forward to catch him. That thing was _powerful_. He gritted his teeth in annoyance, watching the Ultra Beast somehow grow larger. Almost like it absorbed their Pokémon’s power. 

The jelly-like creature suddenly swooped down, and Lillie let out a whimper of panic. Lusamine rushed towards her child, embracing her tightly in an attempt to protect her. Nihilego continued floating towards them, limbs extending out as it let out a hiss. 

“Look! If you wanna take her, you’ll have to go through me!” Gladion snarled, stepping forward along with Snowy, Umbreon, and Silvally. He was not going to see the same thing happen to his family twice. 

Ash’s heart leapt in his throat as he watched the blonde boy stand boldly in front of his family, pale arms stretched out, green eyes filled with anger and protectiveness. Lusamine seemed to realise what he was trying to do as well. 

“Gladion, NO-“ Ash began, already stepping forward. His sentence was interrupted by his cry of shock. 

Lusamine had also turned around, with a last-minute plan to push her son out of the way but alas, she was too late. The blonde let out a shriek of pain, something that Ash had never heard, and would never, _ever_ like to hear again. The Ultra Beast grasped at Gladion’s shoulders with its tentacles wrapped tightly around his thin form as he struggled slightly. He groaned before his figure seemed to relax, almost like he had given up. 

The Ultra Beast swooped down again, one of its free tentacles reaching out to grab something. Lusamine’s Pokéballs. 

Umbreon growled first, starting to attack it with Dark Pulse. The Ultra Beast dodged it skilfully, swaying around in an almost taunting manner. 

Silvally let out an angry cry, leaping at Nihilego. It grabbed onto Gladion’s crimson bag, snapping the bag off of Gladion’s waist due to the sudden force. Silvally fell to the floor with the bag, and the Ultra Beast pulled away like it was nothing, heading straight towards the closing Ultra Wormhole. 

The last thing Ash saw was one small, weak smile that Gladion had directed straight at him before he was ultimately dragged into the wormhole, disappearing in an instant. 

“Gladion! GLADION! _BIG_ _BROTHER_ _!_ ” 

Lillie screamed and fell to her knees, voice raw as she tried to wriggle out of her mother’s grasp. The room was silent — everyone was shocked to stillness — other than Lillie’s anguished weeps and cries. Lusamine tried consoling her daughter, barely holding up either, whereas everyone else just stared up in shock. 

“Gladion...” The raven boy muttered, “he got taken...”

Ash couldn’t hear anything as the truth refused to settle in. His heart was drumming loudly in his ears, yet it all seemed so far away. He couldn’t feel, couldn’t see and- wow, was that a tear? He couldn’t tell for sure. 

The boy with the cap let out a strangled noise, falling onto his knees, mirroring Lillie’s position. Pikachu cried out in shock, nudging its trainer desperately in an attempt to console him. But no matter how many ‘Pikapi!’s left his throat, Ash still did not react. 

His mind was racing, Gladion’s hopeless smile flashing in front of him. Ash’s heart twisted again at the thought. The guilt rushed through his veins — if he had taken better care of Nebby, this wouldn’t have happened. 

This was all his fault. He couldn’t breathe, he was responsible for this, he had to save Gladion, _he needed to go through that wormhole and sav_ _e_ —

“ASH!” The sharp voice made him look up in shock. Pikachu reached out to wipe away his tears — he didn’t even realise he’d been crying. Professor Burnet stared at him in worry and concern. She reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder, sighing. 

“Why don’t you go home and rest? There’s-“

“Rest? _Rest?!_ GLADION JUST GOT TAKEN, AND YOU WANT ME TO _REST?!_ ” The white-haired woman didn’t seem to even flinch at his tone. 

“Ash,” she whispered, gripping his shoulder tightly. The boy breathed heavily, finally understanding Gladion’s hostility towards Ultra Beasts, this one in particular. He didn’t hate people easily, but this creature made an exception. It was _foul_ and _evil_ , and it took away the person he loved—

Wait. 

Love?

Ash did not have time to process what he just thought before Professor Burnet’s voice cut through his mind again. “There’s nothing we can do right now. The machine is going to need some time to fix, and even then, I can't guarantee that the Ultra Wormhole will be stabilised. The only thing you can do is go home and sleep, Arceus knows you need it.”

“But... but I-“

“You need to _rest_ , Ash, for when it counts,” she said soothingly, amber eyes still sharp. “Do it for me, okay?” The boy nodded numbly, knowing that the woman was right. 

“Okay,” he muttered, distress still evident in his expression, “okay, I will.”

“Meanwhile, you should also figure out what happened to Nebby.”

“Yeah. I will, I will,” he whispered, breathing softer as he calmed down slightly. 

“Good.” The professor hummed, nodding at Lusamine. She was red-eyed as well, no doubt having shed a bunch of tears. Who could blame her? Their family was ripped to shreds by another Ultra Beast situation. These things have got to stop, honestly. 

Lillie walked up to him, holding out something shakily. The familiar bag was held before him, inside were a bunch of colourful discs and three Pokéballs; a Heal Ball, an Ultra Ball, and a Premier Ball. 

“Umbreon, Lycanroc and Silvally,” she whispered the obvious, voice cracking. “I returned Silvally and Umbreon to their balls. They’re brother’s Pokémon and Silvally’s memories. I think you should hold onto them, he would want you to anyway. He trusts you.” Ash didn’t say anything, grabbing the bag tightly. 

“...you care for him, don’t you?” The blonde stated knowingly. Ash flinched, mustering up whatever strength he had left to reply. A small ‘yeah’ rose out of his throat. He looked at the girl’s expression, feeling the guilt wash over him yet again. 

“I’m sorry, Lillie. We’ll get him back. _I’ll_ get him back.”

It finally dawned on the trainer. How much he cared for Gladion, how worried he was, how his heart was still beating at a rapid pace. Ash had admired the emo from day 1, and those feelings had evolved unknowingly. Sudden determination pumped through his veins at the realisation, and he stood up, carrying Nebby and Pikachu with him. 

“I _promise_ you I’ll get him back.”  
  


* * *

The helicopter ride back was... intense, to say the least. 

Ash had too much on his mind. He wanted to go into an Ultra Wormhole right now, no matter how dangerous, wanted to figure out what was wrong with Nebby, and if that meant he had failed his promise to protect it. He wanted Solgaleo and Lunala to appear out of a wormhole and carry him through, to let him save the person he had grown so fond over. 

Funny how their relationship began like any other rivalry, how much his feelings have changed. 

Ash gripped the tiny cocoon in his hands tighter, trying to stay optimistic. Lillie was staring out at the window, an upset look on her face. Not that Ash blamed her — the siblings weren’t that close, yet their relationship was still in the middle of mending before it was forcefully ripped again by this incident. 

“I wonder if Gladion will know what happened to Nebby...” Ash mumbled to himself, Pikachu sniffing the cocoon as he spoke. 

“He might,” Lillie replied, shocking the two. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he did, with how familiar he is about Ultra Beasts and the Foundation’s database."

“Lillie, I’m sorry,” Ash said hurriedly. “We’ll get Gladion back, I’m sure we will,” Ash muttered in an attempt to console both Lillie and himself. The blonde smiled unsurely and nodded. 

“Right.”

Ash then glanced at Lusamine, who was sitting at the front next to Hobbes. He wasn’t that good at reading people, but the Aether Foundation President had never looked so distressed. She kept fidgeting around, eyebrows creased in worry, shoulders hunched over. There was no doubt about it, he had to get Gladion back. If not for him, for them. 

The next few minutes passed in a blur. They were in the helicopter, then they were suddenly walking, and then they were in the car back at Lillie and Gladion’s mansion home. Lillie walked out of the car, gripping onto Snowy tightly. 

Hobbes leaned forward towards the window. “Well then, Master Ash. Safe travels.” Ash forced out a smile, praying it didn’t look as terrible as he felt. 

“Thanks, Hobbes. See you, Lillie,” Ash said, looking at the blonde. Her features reminded him so much of Gladion, it hurt. He wondered how the boy was doing. Was he in pain? Cut that, he was. His stomach twisted at the thought, so he quickly shoved it aside. 

Realising Lillie hadn’t replied yet, Ash frowned. “Lillie!” He called, and she perked up. “See you at the Pokémon School tomorrow.”

She laughed, the laugh sounding restrained and forced at the same time. “Right, right. See you,” she said halfheartedly, turning around to walk back into the mansion. The car started again, leaving Ash in his thoughts. 

Right when the car turned out of sight from the mansion, Ash clenched his teeth, making up his mind. The Altar of the Sunne... Solgaleo and Lunala were there in his dream. If he could get there, on Poni Island, he could summon them and get them to help him save Gladion. 

“Excuse me?” Ash asked, mouth moving faster than his brain. Pikachu laid asleep in his lap, unaware of Ash’s decisions. “Could you let me off here, please? And bring my Pokémon back to the house. Tell Professor Kukui I said not to worry,” he requested, passing his bag and Pikachu — he couldn’t drag him into another dangerous situation like this — to the man. Gladion’s bag was held safely in his hands. He felt that he needed a part of Gladion with him, else he would break down again. 

The chauffeur didn’t bother questioning him, simply stopping the car. Ash quickly opened the door and waved hastily at the chauffeur, already turning back to sprint to the mansion before Pikachu could wake up and possibly drag him back. He knew where Lillie’s room was, he’d been there, after all. Knowing the girl, she wanted to go after her brother as well. Though she was more sensible than most, she and Gladion were very similar sometimes. 

The boy reached the mansion, seeing a familiar figure sneaking around the backyard. Her hair was in a ponytail, and she was wearing clothes that he had never seen before but didn’t bother asking about it. 

“Lillie!” Ash hissed, and she jumped, turning around immediately. Her figure relaxed once she saw who it was. 

“Ash! You shouldn’t sneak up on me like that!” She huffed, crossing her arms defensively. “E-especially when I’m out taking my midnight stroll!”

Ash raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. “You want to save him too, don’t you?” She slumped slightly, nodding in defeat. 

“Then let’s go.”

"Go? Where?"

“To the place in my dream. The Altar of the Sunne. I bet I could get Solgaleo and Lunala to- no, I _know_ I can get them to help. Oh, and also, you might want to bring lesser things,” he pointed out, chuckling. Lillie smiled sheepishly, placing her large bag on the ground. 

“Okay. How’re we going to get there, though?” She asked, pulling out a small pink bag and a Clefairy doll. 

“I...” Ash began, until realising that he had not thought about that. He shifted slightly, feeling the Pokéballs in the bag he was holding. An idea popped up in his head. 

Pulling out the Premier Ball, the boy gripped it tightly before letting the Pokémon out. Silvally materialised in front of them, letting out a curious whine. 

“...wanna help us save Gladion?” Ash asked, walking up towards the chimaera and reaching out to pet it. Silvally leaned into his touch, grunting in agreement. 

Lillie and Ash shared a smile before hopping onto the Pokémon, taking off. They both shared one goal, to get Gladion back safely and soundly. 

“To the Altar of the Sunne.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the gang goes into the Ultra Wormhole

Professor Kukui and Hobbes rushed into the classroom, both foreheads creased with worry.

The colourful group had been mumbling about Ash and Lillie’s lateness — while Ash was almost always the last to arrive, he usually came to school right on the dot. Lillie, on the other hand, was never ever late, which made that day worrying, to say the least. Seeing the two adults only increased their concern. 

Pikachu leapt off the bag Professor Kukui was holding, squeaking frantically to the other Pokémon. They all gasped in shock, starting to panic as well. 

“It seems Miss Lillie has disappeared from the manor house...” Hobbes said, worry evident in his tone. Professor Kukui nodded. 

“The chauffeur gave me Ash’s belongings and passed me a message. He told me that Ash said not to worry,” he explained. 

“Not to worry? Worry about what?” Sophocles asked. 

“Runaways?” Lana breathed. They all shared uneasy looks. After moments of silence, Mallow slammed her hands on the table. 

“They went to save Gladion, I’m sure of it. He’s Lillie’s brother, after all,” Mallow said. Kiawe nodded in agreement. 

“And Ash and Gladion were always close,” he pointed out. 

“Then let’s go after them!” Sophocles declared. 

“But... where would they have gone?” Lana mumbled. That seemed to stun everyone to shock. 

“I think,” Professor Kukui began, making all of them look up, “we should tell our Island Kahuna about this.”

* * *

The trek to the Altar of the Sunne wasn’t as quick as Ash would’ve liked. 

They travelled the whole night through, taking very short breaks in between to rest a little before they finally reached Poni Canyon. 

Having travelled through many regions and being attacked continuously by different evil organisations, Ash wasn’t unfamiliar with booby traps or trick pathways. He had immediately caught on to the unlocked door and managed to use Silvally to get him and Lillie over the large cliff-like structure. 

Right now, the two were facing off against all the Jangmo-o, Hakamo-o and the Altar’s Totem Pokémon, Kommo-o. 

It was right at this moment when Ash realised how he shouldn’t have left all his Pokémon behind. Silvally let out a growl as Lillie sent out Snowy. Their attacks proved useless, and Ash clenched his fists in frustration. He didn’t have time to deal with all of this. 

“So troublesome...” Ash muttered, Silvally grunting in agreement. 

“Hey Ash,” Lillie said, turning to him. “Is it possible to turn Silvally into a Fairy-type?”

Realisation dawned on Ash’s face as she said that. “Of course,” he mumbled, digging the bag around his waist to pull out the pink memory. “Because we’re facing dragon-types!”

Right when Ash was about to throw the memory at Silvally the same way he’s seen Gladion do it, one of the Hakamo-o leapt forward and slapped it out of his hands. It flew right towards the Totem Pokémon, all of them going to guard it. 

“Ash, are you alright?!” Lillie cried in worry. The boy just clutched his hand, wincing in pain as he shook his head dismissively. “Where’s the memory?” He asked, looking around. 

Powder Snow had never been more useful. 

In the blink of an eye, the pair managed to ‘defeat’ all the Pokémon. However, amid all the battling, the ceiling started to collapse. 

“Crap! Lillie, come on!” Ash cried in panic, jumping onto Silvally. Lillie followed quickly, the three rushing to get out of there. 

A large boulder started falling, going straight towards them. The two winced and braced themselves to be hit — Lillie whimpering while Ash clutched Silvally tighter — when out of nowhere, an Electro Ball came flying towards the boulder, breaking it into pieces of rock that rained around them. 

“What was that?” Ash murmured, Silvally coming to a stop outside the cave. 

“Hey!” 

A familiar group of people rushed out, panting. Ash stiffened while Lillie looked plain surprised. 

“PIKAPI!”

The yellow mouse Pokémon leapt towards Ash, squeaking disdainfully. The boy with the cap chuckled lowly before shaking his head, turning to the rest of the group. 

“What’re all of you doing here?”

“What are we doing here?” Kiawe repeated, scoffing. “We’re here to help you, obviously!”

_Help me..?_

_This is all my fault... I can’t drag them into this._

“...No. This is something Lillie and I can deal with. So go back, we’ll be fine.” The words were out of his mouth before he could think about anything else. 

“Ash,” Lillie hissed warningly, but he ignored her. He got off Silvally, plucking Pikachu off his shoulder and placing him on the ground. Pikachu squeaked in protest, but Ash silenced him with a look. 

“This is something I have to deal with. This is something that I caused. I’ll go save Gladion. You’re all not needed.”

“Ash...” Professor Kukui began, but Mallow cut him to it. 

“Come on. In Alola, people share all sorts of things, right? Whatever problems you’re facing, you can share it with us,” she said, a bright smile on her face. Lana, Sophocles and Kiawe hummed in agreement. 

“Ash... what I’m going to say may not make a lot of sense to you, but I think letting them help is a great idea,” Lillie mumbled. 

“Pika!”

“I...” He pulled down his cap, gears in his brain whirling. Was it really worth it to drag them into this situation?

“We’ll have a better chance of saving Gladion with their help,” she continued, watching him closely. 

_Better chance of saving Gladion._

“Alright, fine. Let’s go, we don’t have much time.”

He watched as smiles appeared on all of his friends’ faces. Professor Kukui sent him a nod before giving him his backpack, and Ash could only nod back stiffly. 

They walked towards the Altar of the Sunne quickly, yet Ash felt himself lagging behind. 

_Gladion... where are you now? Are you suffering?_ Ash clutched the waist bag tightly. _Arceus, I hope not. I hope you’re okay. This was all my fault anyway, I’m sorry-_

“Ash.” The gentle voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He moved his head slightly to see the blonde looking at him concernedly, Snowy in her hands. “Everything alright?” She asked, even though the answer was obvious. 

“...Yeah, I am.” Pikachu was up ahead with Silvally, currently being entertained by Professor Kukui. 

“No, you’re not,” she said, raising an eyebrow. Why ask if she knew the answer? He looked away, and her expression morphed into something softer. More sympathetic. 

“You really, _really_ care for my brother, don’t you?” She mumbled. “I can see why. You two were a lot closer than him and I.”

“L-Lillie! That’s not true,” Ash replied in shock. 

“No, don’t worry about it, cause it is. He really admires you, you know. And Gladion may not show it, but he cares for you a lot. He talks about you sometimes too, it’s sweet.”

“O-oh?” Ash asked, embarrassment flooding his veins. 

“Yep! Everything like, _wow_ , Ash is so strong, his Lycanroc is so cool, what even? He’s way too cheerful, I’ve never seen anyone as optimistic as him, he accepted Silvally the instant he saw it. That's amazing? His smile is so infuriating and cute-“

“Lillie!” Ash interrupted, face flushing as she giggled. 

“Just joking, just joking. But really, it’s... okay to be worried. I am as well. Although maybe... now is not the best time to say this, but you two really are something else. Keep what you two have to heart, Ash. Truly.” With that being said, the blonde walked up ahead, hair swaying with her steps. 

Ash looked back down, eyebrows furrowed. Whatever she meant, he would figure out later, because right now, he had to deal with this Ultra Beast situation. 

Another stressful, blurry fifteen minutes passed before Ash found himself travelling through an Ultra Wormhole on Solgaleo’s back. He had his backpack back on, Pikachu on his shoulder, the red bag secured tightly around his waist, and the adrenaline was pumping in his veins yet again. 

They were going to rescue Gladion. 

_He_ was going to rescue Gladion.   


* * *

“Hhh...”

Originally green eyes opened, now filled with spots of black and navy. 

“Where... where am I?”

The boy reached up to try and touch his face, only to realise that his hands had turned into... tentacles. 

Gladion’s eyes widened in shock, moving toward his bangs on the right. They were half covered in black, dripping from something that looked like ink. His eyes drifted towards his surroundings, realising he was surrounded by purply-blue crystals and rocks. 

From his vision, he could see multiple UB01 Symbiont, all floating around aimlessly. His instinct was to grab Silvally’s Pokéball from his bag, only to realise that he _couldn’t_. 

“Shit, what the-?”

**_Hello, Gladion._ **

“The fuck- who’re you?!” He yelled to no one in particular, though his voice sounded hoarse. Out of his control, the tentacles moved up and placed themselves right in front of his vision. 

**_Humans... they certainly are an intriguing specimen._**

Gladion caught sight of the eyes on the tentacles, making him grit his teeth. 

“UB01 Symbiont... what are you doing to me?”

**_Please, call me Nihilego. That name makes me sound like a lab experiment._**

“You _are_ a lab experiment, you idiot-“

Out of nowhere, a blurry, drowsy feeling engulfed his brain, cutting him off and making him loll his head to the side slightly. He could feel his energy getting drained, from his head all the way to his toes. 

**_You might want to stop struggling. You’ll only waste your energy._ **

“Get... get out of my head,” he mumbled angrily, trying to sound as intimidating as possible — but to no avail with how weak he felt. 

**_I'm afraid I can’t do that. I want to learn more about you... all the things you know and everything you’ve experienced._**

“Gross, that’s creepy. Leave me alone! What are you... what are you doing to me?” He whispered, finding it harder and harder to stay awake. Evil thoughts started filling his brain, all the grudges he had held in his life began to hit him at full force, no matter how hard he tried to push them away. 

**_Think of me as nothing, Gladion. I’m merely feeding you a little bit of... neurotoxins; nothing drastic._ **

“Neuro what?”

**_Something that will... cause your deepest feelings to surface. I want to know all about them. So don’t you worry, let them consume you. That’s what I need, anyway._**

The old memories were hitting him at full force. When Lusamine neglected him and Lillie after Mohn’s disappearance before she suddenly pretended that everything was fine, that she was the _perfect_ mother with her _perfect_ children. And then Lillie became unable to touch Pokémon (no thanks to Faba), and Lusamine didn’t even care. 

Hatred filled his veins, though Gladion tried his best to push it away. 

**_Don’t struggle against your feelings, Gladion. Simply embrace them._**

Another memory hit him, this time his mind visualised the raven-haired boy he had admittedly grown fond of. The blonde gritted his teeth slightly. When he first met Ash, he was taken aback by the boy’s visible enthusiasm for battling. Then, Lillie revealed that she could touch Pokémon (specifically the Alolan Vulpix she had nicknamed Snowy for some reason), and was then discovered to be in the same class as Ash. 

They seemed close, and Gladion couldn’t help but feel jealous. Judging by what he heard about Ash, the raven-haired trainer had not been in Alola for very long. 

So how was he and Lillie so close already? 

He accepted Ash’s battle request and _hell_ , his tiny little Rockruff proved to be so much more. It was obviously no match for his Lycanroc, but he didn’t seem the least bit downtrodden. Instead, he was bursting with admiration. He couldn’t help but feel a little flustered at the attention and had to turn away or cover his face multiple times to hide his blush. 

How Ash and Lillie could communicate so casually, he would never understand. And he would never like it. 

When Ash helped Lillie overcome her fear of touching Pokémon, something he’d been trying to do their whole childhood, it angered him to no end. How he did it so effortlessly like it was _no big deal_ . How Lillie was able to touch Pikachu before any of his Pokémon. Gladion knew it was his fault for being so distant, but still, he was her brother. _He_ should be the only helping Lillie, Lillie should’ve been able to touch _his_ Pokémon first. 

_Stupid, stupid. Why did you have to appear in Lillie’s life before I could come back?_

It wasn’t Ash’s fault, but he was certainly easier to blame. And while the blonde had pushed those feelings aside and tried to be grateful towards Ash, it seemed like Nihilego was making those feelings surface again. 

_Why do you and Lillie get to be so close? What about me?_

“No... I don’t hate my mother or Ash. I never hated him,” he said weakly, more to himself. His thoughts were running wild, filling every fibre of his being with a deep hatred he didn’t even know he had. He tried writhing out of Nihilego’s body, but pretty much all his energy had been drained. 

Ash’s face kept appearing in his mind, the bright smile he gives, how he practically radiates happiness, all laughs and dimples and everything Lillie got to see. 

**_Jealousy... it’s certainly a fascinating thing. Comes in quite a few forms for you, hm?_**

“Shut the fuck up, Nihilego.”

**_Tut tut, language... interesting. You don’t seem to hold much against your sister._**

“Please... don’t make me hate Lillie,” he mumbled sadly, remembering the guilt he felt when he left the mansion, leaving the poor girl alone. 

**_I can’t make you hate her, stupid. I only make your feelings stronger and... wilder, I’d say. If you don’t hate your sister, I can’t make you._ **

“But I don’t hate Ash either!” He said defensively, his heart thumping at the thought of the cheerful sunshine boy. 

**_Jealousy and hatred are two different things, I suppose._ **

Gladion felt another wave of drowsiness consume him, this one more severe than the previous one, therefore rendering him unable to contemplate Nihilego’s words. His brain had almost shut off completely, the only thing keeping him awake was the anger and grudges towards his mother (and sadly, Ash). 

**_Say goodbye to your own body, my dear. For now... I think you and I could fuse for a while._ **

“Fuse? What do you mean by that?!” Gladion whisper-shouted, fear in his voice. He wriggled his legs in vain. 

**_I share your thoughts, you share mine._**

Finally, his eyes went shut, and his world went still, the boy no longer able to struggle. 

* * *

“Woah...”

The group couldn’t contain their gasps once they reached the other end of the Ultra Wormhole. Solgaleo landed on a platform gently, letting them all off. 

Beautiful rocks were scattered around the area. It seemed like an endless amount of space, seeing as the rocks were literally everywhere. Purple crystals adorned each platform, making the area sparkle and glow in a mysteriously charming way. 

The Ultra Deep Sea. 

“Danger! Danger! Ultra Beast alert!”

Ash’s eyes darted towards the direction where Rotom was, tensing up at the sight of the stupid Ultra Beast. 

“The same one that took my brother,” Lillie muttered beside him, an equally spiteful expression on her face. Hatred did not go well with the blonde’s soft features, as compared to her brother’s sharper and more intense look.

The group all let out their Pokémon in an attempt to feel more protected. Ash let out Gladion’s Pokémon as well, just in case. Umbreon snarled with her body in defence position, Lycanroc let out a low growl as he bared his teeth. Silvally, on the other hand, stuck by Ash closely for some reason. Almost like it had placed its full trust in him to save its own trainer. 

Suddenly, Silvally began to panic and charge in a direction. Ash held it back immediately, Pikachu crying out in shock. 

“What? What is it?!” He asked worriedly. Solgaleo let out an intense, warning roar. They all looked in the direction of where Silvally was growling at, only to gasp in shock. 

“That... that can’t be...”

Eyes opened, revealing complete black orbs filled with maniac and evil in them. Skin paler than usual and clothes completely dark, the figure raised its tentacles and shielded itself. 

“No...”

However different he looked, the boy was unmistakably Gladion. Bangs still covered his right eye in the exact same fashion, and his typical hoodie was there, yet it didn’t really feel like Gladion. His hair had gone pitch black, and his earrings seemed to glisten brightly. 

“Gladion!” Ash cried, completely forgetting about Silvally and running forward. The Gladion-Nihilego fusion shrunk back. Lillie followed after with determination in her eyes. 

“No... NO!” He (it?) snapped, a rough edge to his tone. Ash stopped in shock and slight hurt. 

“STAY AWAY!” He held out a tentacle and waved it, shimmery, dangerous crystals sprouting out of the ground, almost in a Stone Edge-like fashion. 

Ash fell back slightly as he attempted to save Lillie from harm. As different as the boy might be, he knew the blonde would freak if anything happened to his beloved little sister. Him and Kiawe were way too similar sometimes. 

Umbreon immediately defeated the crystals with a well-aimed Dark Pulse, causing them to break and scatter.

“What’s that Ultra Beast planning to do with him?!” Mallow shrieked, the rest of the group running up. 

“The Ultra Beast... since it’s fused with Gladion, it may be trying to drain his energy as well,” Lillie said softly. 

“Drain his energy?!”

“Yes, so that he can’t fight against the fusion.”

Ash’s heart twisted. He immediately stepped forward again, but he was held back this time by Kiawe.

“No, Ash! If we chase him, he’s probably going to get angry!” he explained once he saw Ash’s angry expression. 

“So?! Gladion’s _hurt!_ ”

“And we can’t have you getting hurt too,” he stated firmly. Ash looked down and nodded. 

Gladion was flying away, watching them warily. The Ultra Beast left a rock path for them to follow, which they obliged willingly. 

“Gladion, come back! This isn’t you!” Ash yelled, Pikachu squeaking in support. 

“No! This is what I want— stay away from me! I finally got to fuse with an Ultra Beast!” He yelled back. Ash had to scoff at the irony. 

“He’s acting like a child!” Lana commented. Lillie’s expression hardened at that, although there was still the underlying sadness in her eyes. 

They reached another platform, everyone pausing as they awaited the Ultra Beast’s next move. “Snowy, use Powder Snow!” Lillie commanded. 

It didn’t do a thing. 

“STAY AWAY!” Gladion screamed again. UB01 Symbiont defended itself using Rock Shield, shocking everyone. 

“I HATE YOU ALL!”

That seemed to make something in Ash break. His breath hitched as his knees almost gave way. 

_Hate me..?_

He knew Gladion was being controlled and that he didn’t really mean it, but it still felt like it was directed straight at him. 

“Don’t listen to him, Lillie! It’s not really him!” Mallow’s voice cut through. Ash turned to see Lillie in a similar state of shock. 

_Right... this isn’t about me. This is for Lillie. Stop thinking about yourself._

Ash quickly shook his head, putting out his hand. “Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!”

He turned to the Midnight Lycanroc, who was already baring his teeth. Ash nodded. 

“Stone Edge, now!”

Along with Kiawe’s attacks, the four moves crashed into the rocks, doing no damage. Gladion was already starting to fly away. After Solgaleo helped them to break through, Gladion growled. 

“Leave me alone...” he hissed lowly, “or I’m going to do something frightening!”

“Gladion-“ Ash began. 

Gladion pulled out a Pokéball, and all of them flinched. He threw it, sending out a Salazzle. 

“That’s... that’s Mother’s Salazzle...” Lillie whispered. 

“Didn’t UB01 Symbiont take your mum’s Pokéballs before it left?” Ash muttered. “Silvally managed to get Gladion’s Pokéballs away, but not Lusamine’s.”

“You’re right. That’s why- ah!”

Salazzle sent a wave of poison towards the group, making everyone shriek. Kiawe countered the attack with Turtonator’s Flamethrower. 

“Leave Salazzle to me and go after Gladion!” He commanded as he started battling Salazzle. “I’ll take care of this!” The group hesitated slightly. “We’ll be fine, now get out of here!”

Ash would’ve argued if he wasn’t so intent on getting Gladion back. He nodded gratefully at Kiawe before the rest of the group hopped onto Solgaleo, chasing after Gladion yet again. 

“Big brother...” Lillie mumbled worriedly. Ash turned to her and tried to give her the most reassuring look possible. 

“We’ll get him back,” he said for what seemed like the thousandth time. The blonde looked up at him before smiling, nodding in agreement. 

“I know we will.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ash has to convince gladion to come back to them

Travelling through the Ultra Deep Sea and chasing after Gladion wasn’t as easy as it seemed. 

Mallow, Lana and Sophocles stayed back with their Pokémon to fight Milotic, Mismagius and Liligant along with Rotom, Litten and Rowlet. That left Ash and Lillie — along with Snowy, Pikachu, both Lycanroc, Umbreon and Silvally chasing after Gladion on Solgaleo. 

Gladion stopped, with a crazed look in his eyes. He threw out another Pokéball, an Absol appearing. 

“Breon!” Umbreon snarled, bending down. Lillie cocked her head to the side. 

“If I’m not wrong...” she whispered, “that Absol used to be Umbreon’s training partner. Ever since Umbreon was still an Eevee.”

“Yeah?” Ash said, too busy trying to figure out a way to chase Gladion and ignore Absol. The Disaster Pokémon was already beginning to attack with Razor Leaf, Umbreon’s Dark Pulse countering in an instant. 

Ash let out a frustrated groan, weighing the options in his head. He couldn’t leave Lillie here to fight, but he couldn’t let Gladion get away either. 

“Ash?” Lillie asked. “What do we do?”

“I... go after Gladion. Pikachu, Lycanroc, both of you follow Lillie. I’ll stay back with Gladion’s Pokémon to fight.”

“Pika pika!”

“But Ash!” Lillie began, stopping when the boy held up a hand. 

“Just go. I’ll catch up as soon as I can.” 

The blonde bit her lip, nodding reluctantly. She patted Solgaleo after Pikachu jumped towards her, flying away and after her brother. 

Ash grimaced, turning towards the battle in front of him. “Absol...” he said, tugging his cap nervously. “I’m your opponent now.”

With those words, Absol shot an Ice Beam attack. “Dodge it!” Ash yelled. Umbreon and Lycanroc jumped out of the way, but Silvally was too late. 

“Silvally!” Ash called worriedly, guilt heavy in his heart when he heard Silvally whine. Absol then shot a Mean Look attack. 

Ash, being too busy with worrying about Silvally, was late in calling out another command. Umbreon and Lycanroc got hit by a full blast of Mean Look. 

“Crap,” Ash muttered. Umbreon and Lycanroc were unable to move, and Silvally was still stuck. 

“What do I do... what do I do...” He gripped the red bag tightly, eyebrows creasing as he watched the Pokémon struggle. 

Silvally grunted, giving the bag Ash was holding a look. Something seemed to click in Ash’s brain as he gasped, quickly opening up the bag. 

“Fire Memory...” he mumbled, pulling out the red-gold disc. He grinned, throwing it at Silvally. Its feathers and tail turned crimson red, along with its eyes. Ash grinned successfully. 

“Break through that ice!” He yelled, a fist in the air as Silvally obliged. Silvally attacked again using Multi-Attack, breaking Umbreon and Lycanroc out of the Mean Look. 

“Great! Now use Crush Claw!” The attack shoves Absol backwards. The Pokémon snarled and retaliated using another well-aimed Ice Beam, though Umbreon quickly countered it with Dark Pulse, followed by Silvally’s Air Slash. 

“Nice job, you two. Let’s finish this up,” Ash said, looking at the growling Lycanroc. “Lycanroc?” He called, the red and white Pokémon glancing at him. Ash pulled out his Rockium-Z, nodding. 

“I... I know I’m not Gladion, but I believe we can pull this off. Will you do this Z-Move with me?” He asked firmly. The Pokémon nodded without hesitation as Ash placed the brown crystal on his Z-Ring. 

“Alright! Let’s do this!” He yelled, arms crossing over his face as he formed the familiar poses. “With Full! Power! NOW! USE CONTINENTAL CRUSH!”

Lycanroc howled, leaping into the air. Rocks started floating up, turning into the large boulder that Ash wasn’t at all unfamiliar with. The Wolf Pokémon growled lowly, throwing the boulder straight at the opposing Pokémon. Absol was knocked down in an instant. 

“YES!” Ash cried, relief flooding in his veins. “We did it!”

He fell to the floor, slightly tired. The three Pokémon came running up to him, panting. “Thanks, you guys, and thanks to you too, Lycanroc. That was really cool,” Ash breathed, rubbing its white mane. 

“Okay, just a short rest, then we’ll continue chasing Gladion, alright?” Ash asked, knowing the Pokémon were tired. They all nodded gratefully, seemingly more relaxed now that their opponent was down. 

Not even two minutes later, they heard a small grunt. Ash turned to the Pokémon, smiling lightly. “Hey Absol, sorry for knocking you down! But it seems like you’re alright now- WOAH!”

The four of them leapt out of the way of Absol’s attack. It still had the red aura around it, glowing ferociously. 

“Use Stone Edge!” Ash cried, trying not to let his panic show. The Wolf Pokémon obliged, though Absol still remained standing. 

“Of course...” Ash muttered, glancing up to wear Lillie and Solgaleo were. “Until that Ultra Beast is defeated, there will be no end to this battle...”

Making up his mind, Ash nodded at Silvally. “Umbreon, Lycanroc, take care of Absol, alright? I’m going to Gladion.” With that, Silvally roared and started advancing, leaving the other two behind. 

When Silvally leapt towards the top, they saw Lillie on Solgaleo’s back, staring at Gladion intensely. Silvally stopped once it noticed the poisonous liquid practically flooding the area. 

“Lillie!” Ash cried across the ‘river’. “Listen! If we don’t defeat that Ultra Beast soon, your mother’s Pokémon will keep reviving to no end! And soon, the others battling will be in danger!” He heard Lillie gasp in shock. Ash noticed Clefable beside Lillie, not bothering to question it. 

“Wait! It’s dangerous to cross! That’s poison!” Lillie warned right when Ash was about to step into the purple liquid. 

“Poison...” he muttered, wracking his brain for a solution. Silvally nudged him, looking at the bag again. 

“Of course! A Steel-type Memory should do the trick! Y’know, Silvally, you’re really smart,” Ash said, grinning at the artificial Pokémon while he thanked the gods for listening to the classes on type advantages. Once the disc was inserted, Ash hopped onto Silvally, the Pokémon carrying him forward with ease. Pikachu bounced towards his trainer. 

The boy with the cap sent his own Lycanroc back with Solgaleo to help the others battling, knowing they might be in trouble already. 

Gladion-Nihilego let out a frustrated grunt, snarls ripping from his throat as he turned away. Ash and Lillie shared a look. “You’re running away?!” Lillie cried in disbelief. 

“THAT’S BECAUSE YOU KEEP CHASING ME!” He screamed, voice raw with anger. 

Ash gritted his teeth tighter, Pikachu nuzzling him worriedly at the action. They watched in horror as Gladion created a rock hill-like structure, the Ultra Beast dancing around on top of it in a taunting manner. The moment Ash tried to walk forward, Gladion showered them with a bunch of poison, making everyone shriek. 

“That’s it!” 

Everyone turned to the blonde in shock as she dashed forward, starting to climb up the rocks. “Lillie, wait-“ Ash protested, only to be silenced by Lillie’s glare. 

“This is something I have to tell my brother. Please, let me handle this.”

The raven-haired boy shifted uncomfortably, looking at Silvally beside him. “As soon as we sense danger,” he hissed, eyeing Lillie’s movements carefully, “we move, got it?” 

Silvally grunted in agreement. They watched with worry as Lillie made her way to the top with difficulty, nearly falling over due to the rocks Gladion kept creating. 

“...you know what?” She began, hands clenched into fists. “I HATE YOU!”

Everyone froze at her sudden outburst. Ash looked at Gladion worriedly, who had also frozen from the shock. The blonde huffed loudly, a glare painted on her face. 

“You’re always talking about how Ultra Beasts are dangerous...” she hissed, voice dripping with venom. “Always telling me to stay away. You left me alone in the mansion, going off to heaven knows where, claiming that it’s all for defeating  _ every last Ultra Beast. _ You treat me like I’m a weakling and you go off trying to protect me. But look at you now...” The girl stepped forward angrily. 

“You’re  _ fusing _ with an Ultra Beast. You can’t even fight against it,” she accused, making Ash grit his teeth again. He knew she was just trying to guilt-trip him into coming out, but still...

“You’re a weak puppet and nothing more. But my brother? He’s very strong,” she whispered, sniffling slightly. “...and what about you?”

That seemed to trigger something in the Ultra Beast. Gladion’s eyes went shut, and he seemed to be struggling really hard. 

“Gladion!” Ash called worriedly. It raised a tentacle, making him flinch. “Silvally, quick! Before Lillie gets hit!” Ash instructed, jumping onto the Pokémon. It roared and leapt over, Ash grabbing Lillie out of harm’s way just in the nick of time. 

“Big Brother!” She called worriedly. Ash ignored Pikachu’s cries as he too raced up the rocks. If Lillie couldn’t stop UB01 Symbiont though, why would he be able to?

“Never know until you try...” he muttered to himself, reaching the top. Gladion flinched very obviously at the presence of the boy. 

“No...” he mumbled, his voice sounding the most vulnerable Ash had ever heard. “Stay away from me... I can’t- I can’t hurt-“

“Gladion,” Ash interrupted weakly, tears swimming in his eyes. “It’s me, Ash. You know me, right?”

“Stay... away...”

“C’mon, Glads. I know you’re strong enough to fight against this. You can come out all by yourself. If not for me, for Lillie. You care about her, don’t you?”

“I...”

“ _ Please _ ,” Ash whispered, a soft smile on his face. “After everything you told me about Ultra Beasts, there’s no way you’d willingly fuse with one. Come on out.” He held out a hand shakily, trying his best to smile. “Come back to us.”

Gladion paused, shaking his head wildly. “No, no no no! You don’t UNDERSTAND! I  _ CAN’T! _ ” He burst out, a bunch of poison flying out again. Ash shielded himself quickly, peeking out from under his hand. 

“Yes you can,” Ash said, staring up at the boy he’s come to love. “I know you can! I believe in you.”

“STOP!”

“Gladion. Come on out.”

“NO! I CAN’T!”

“You can, Gladion. I trust you, like how you told me you trust me.” 

“LEAVE ME ALONE!”

Ash squeezed his eyes shut, forcing himself to spit out the next sentence with as much venom as possible. If this wasn’t going to work, he might as well resort to guilt-tripping, the same thing Lillie tried. 

“Seriously! You’re breaking  _ my _ trust in you!” He snapped. “I thought you were strong enough to fight! Come on, SHOW ME THE GLADION I’VE LOVED AND TRUSTED FOR SO LONG!” He yelled, vaguely aware of Lillie’s gasp. 

Something flashed in Gladion’s previously dull eyes. Colour filled them in an instant, the eyes widening. The Ultra Beast seemed to freeze altogether, no longer holding its tentacles up. 

“A-Ash,” he choked out, a pale hand stretching out towards the boy, painstakingly slow. The raven boy gasped and reached forward as well, ready to grasp the other’s hand and pull him out. 

All of a sudden, Nihilego seemed to engulf Gladion into himself, stopping the boy from struggling against it. It raised a tentacle, flying straight towards him. Ash was saved by Silvally from getting hit, yet...

“GLADION! NO!” He screamed in agony, dashing forwards, only to be stopped by Pikachu and Clefable. 

The Ultra Beast continued surrounding itself with rocks, trapping Gladion completely. There was nowhere for it to run. 

“Ash?” Lillie called. He turned towards her, seeing the gentle expression on her face. “Silvally and I can distract it. You can use your Z-Move with Pikachu to defeat that Ultra Beast, alright?” She offered, Ash nodding in an instant. 

_ Anything to defeat that foul creature. _

Lillie chuckled softly, making Ash realise he had spoken out loud. “Okay Silvally, use Air Slash!” She said, the artificial Pokémon doing as it was told. 

_ Anything... anything to save him. I’ll do whatever it takes. _

With that determination pumping in his veins, Ash nodded, smiling at Pikachu. “LET’S DO THIS!”

His Z-Crystal glowed, suddenly changing shape. His cap was blown away, though Pikachu caught it and put it on. Ash didn’t have time to ponder over the weird Z-Crystal as Lillie cried worriedly. “Ash, do it now!” She said, watching UB01 Symbiont warily. 

“Right!” Ash called back, twisting it. The power he felt next was like none other before. Was it his determination that made him feel this way? The adrenaline?

Oh well, didn’t matter. 

“TEN MILLION VOLT THUNDERBOLT, NOW!” Ash didn’t even realise what he was screaming until it happened. 

Pikachu flew up into the air, electricity crackling around his cheeks. Thunderclouds appeared out of nowhere, swirling around. In a matter of seconds, electricity in the form of a rainbow shower was formed. A giant sphere of white light formed around Pikachu, pushing the rainbow forward. 

“PIKA-PIKAAAAAAAA!” 

And all that light was headed straight at the Ultra Beast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow that was a literal soap opera to write


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> kukui is being papa-kukui, ash saves the day again, and gladion just wants to sleep

One hour. 

One  _ painstakingly _ long hour. 

It’s been exactly one hour since Kukui and Burnet had watched them fly through the Ultra Wormhole on Solgaleo’s back. Lusamine had arrived at the scene about fifteen minutes ago, along with Wicke, who was desperately trying to calm the woman. 

Kukui sighed for what seems like the hundredth time that day, looking up. The marker that Burnet had shot into the sky hovered around, almost like it was taunting him. It stared down at him with such haughtiness, such  _ arrogance _ , because it was so out of reach — just like his precious students and damn it Kukui  _ resented _ that-

“Hey.” The soft voice broke him out of his thoughts. “You doing alright?”

Kukui turned towards the white-haired woman on his left who was wholly engrossed in the data on her screen. “Mm, I’m fine,” he replied, the words coming out as more of a grumble. She nodded slightly. 

“You’re worried about them, aren’t you?” She asked, finally turning to face him. He sighed again, sitting down. 

“It’s been an hour,” he said, gesturing towards the sky, “and there’s still no sign of them.”

“They’ll... they’ll be fine,” she said, though Kukui could hear the uncertainty in her voice. “They’re wonderful kids, they’ll get through this.”

“Even so, how do we know if they’ll return safely? You said it yourself, the Ultra Wormhole mightn’t be stable enough for them to come back.” That seemed to shut her up for a bit. 

“Sorry,” Kukui mumbled. “I’m just nervous and everything-“

“No, no. It’s okay, I understand how you’re feeling,” Burnet interrupted, amber eyes shining with empathy. “But don’t you forget, they’ve got the legendary Pokémon Solgaleo with them. It won’t let anything happen to them.”

For the first time in quite a while, a smile appeared on Kukui’s face. “Hm, yeah.” She grinned back at him, turning back to her computer screen. 

Lusamine walked over, heels clicking on the ground with each step. Wicke appeared too, the four adults crowded around Burnet’s device. 

“Any sign of them?” Lusamine asked, her voice shaky. Even with how distressed she was, the woman still looked like the epitome of perfection, gracefully walking and carrying herself. 

“No, not yet,” Burnet replied, pity evident in her voice. The women sighed and nodded. 

Wicke, who was for some reason holding a box of cookies, offered them to the President. “Chocolate chip,” she said, “they’re sure to make you feel better!”

Lusamine crossed her arms, shaking her head. That made both Wicke and Burnet frown. 

“Lusamine, you haven’t eaten since yesterday’s dinner,” Burnet said. “I get that you’re worried, but you need to take care of yourself too.”

“Burnet’s right! We can’t have our very own President on the verge of collapsing just because she didn’t eat,” said Wicke pointedly. Lusamine only exhaled deeply. 

“Whatever. What’re we going to do about Faba?” She asked. Kukui raised an eyebrow at the sudden change in topic, sharing a look with Burnet. 

“We still haven’t found him,” Wicke said, looking slightly nervous. With her being the Assistant Branch Chief and Faba being the Branch Chief, it was clear she was uncomfortable talking about him and his wrongdoings. 

“How long does he think he can hide?” Burner mumbled, seemingly annoyed. Kukui didn’t dare to ask about her apparent grudge towards the man. 

“I can’t let him continue being the Branch Chief... not with what he did now and four years ago too,” Lusamine said, eyebrows furrowed in frustration. 

“Oh, just demote him,” Kukui joked, trying to ease the tension. That seemed to light something up in Lusamine’s brain. 

“Of course!” She said, snapping her fingers. Kukui swore he heard Burnet laugh at his shocked expression. The President turned to Wicke, clapping her hands. “Wicke, you’re now the Branch Chief! Faba will have a fresh start and work under you! That is of course if he finally decides to show himself-”

“Woah woah, Miss President! Are you sure you want to promote  _ me? _ Wouldn’t Professor Burnet be a better option?” Wicke said unsurely, chuckling while she rearranged her glasses. Burnet stood up, placing a hand on the purple haired’s shoulder. 

“Wicke, silly, you’ll be a great Branch Chief! Your work ethic is way better than mine and we both know that,” Burnet said, positively beaming. Wicke still seemed slightly flustered, although she nodded. 

“If- if that’s what you think is best...” she said, smiling tentatively. Lusamine nodded as well. 

“Then that’s settled. I’ll go back to the Foundation to sort out some paperwork. Wicke, would you follow me?” 

“Right, on it!”

The two ladies waved goodbye before stepping onto the helicopter that had brought them there in the first place. Kukui and Burnet waved back, watching the helicopter soar into the sky and out of sight. 

“And there’s that. Looks like it’s back to worrying about the kids,” Kukui mumbled, hearing Burnet snicker.

“You worry too much, Kukui,” she teased. He scoffed loudly, rolling his eyes. 

“You don’t have the right to say that when Braviary and I literally saved you from getting thrashed by all those Pokémon back there,” he shot back. 

“Mm. You’re never going to let me live that one down, are you?”

“Never.”

* * *

Ash and Lillie watched in horror as the light struck the Ultra Beast, the ‘protection’ around it disappearing in an instant. UB01 Symbiont seemed to be completely paralysed for a few seconds, tensing up and unable to move by all the voltage it took in. 

Ash froze, the worst-case scenario flashing in his brain. He pictured Gladion collapsing onto the floor, no sign of life, eyes rolled to the back of his skull, blood pouring-

_ Did I hurt Gladion with that Z-move?!  _

All of a sudden, the Ultra Beast fell forwards, falling straight onto the floor with a loud ‘smack’. Ash let out a strangled gasp while the rest of the Pokémon cried in shock. He dashed forward, soon to be joined by Lillie. 

“Gladion? Gladion?!” Ash called desperately, staring at the mess of jelly-like tentacles and ink. Any other day he would’ve been slightly disturbed, but that wasn’t the priority right now. 

The tentacles seemed to shift, and a single pale, frail hand emerged from it, reaching out weakly. Ash gripped onto it instantly, tears starting to form in his eyes. He could’ve killed Gladion with that Z-move for all he’d known and right now, Ash was thanking the Tapus it didn’t happen because Arceus knows he’ll never ever get over it. 

Lillie held onto her brother’s hand as well, the two tugging it with all their might. A loud, gut-wrenching groan was heard, the squelching sound of Nihilego detaching itself from Gladion’s body filling the air. The Ultra Beast soared away, going off to who knows where. All that was left was Gladion’s body, absolutely  _ soaked _ in black ink. 

Lillie couldn’t take it anymore; she burst into tears, sobs wracking her body. Clefable and Snowy dashed forward for moral support, trying to calm the poor girl’s heart. Ash only stared at Gladion’s body — seeing the lifeless look take over his face hurt him to no end. 

“Gla...dion?” Ash whispered, leaning forward. He shook the blonde’s body once, getting no response. 

Fear started building up in Ash’s chest. He couldn’t... he couldn’t have really  _ killed _ him, could he..?

The blonde’s finger twitched slightly — it would’ve been unnoticeable if Ash wasn’t already holding onto his hand. He squeezed Gladion’s hand tightly, refusing to let go as he internally pleaded for the boy to just open his eyes. 

It worked. 

Eyes fluttered open slowly, revealing the sharp green eyes Ash so longed to see. The raven was doing his best not to cry, but he couldn’t stop the few tears that slipped, rolling steadily down his flushed cheeks. Lillie had calmed down slightly, though she was still buried in Clefable’s arms, whimpering every now and then. 

“Gladion,” Ash breathed, the relief flooding in his veins making him feel faint. Gladion groaned again as Ash helped him sit up. 

“I...” the blonde mumbled, throat dry and voice scratchy, probably from being used by the Ultra Beast for so long. “Nihilego can go fuck off.”

Ash let out a watery laugh as his lips quivered uncontrollably. “You nearly fucking d-died... and that’s the first thing you say?” He asked, voice shaking. Pikachu ran up towards him and placed his cap back on, nuzzling him in an attempt to produce some comfort for the distraught boy. Gladion only sent him a weak grin. 

“Gotta say, I never expected to be struck by so much electricity from ya. Guess I could say you  _ struck me speechless _ .” Laughter bubbled from Ash’s chest as he tried to refrain himself from hitting the older teen. 

“Stop  _ joking _ about your near-death experience!” He snapped, though the grin on his face did not quite match his tone. Lillie turned towards them, a small smile on her face. 

“I’m so glad you’re alright,” she sniffed, rubbing her eyes viciously. Gladion’s expression turned even softer at the sight of his sister. 

“I’m sorry...” he mumbled, looking down. Ash squeezed his hand again, still refusing to let go. 

“Hey, not your fault you were captured by an Ultra Beast. You were just trying to protect your family,” he pointed out, Lillie nodding in agreement. Ash helped lift the blonde to his feet, Silvally rushing over for support as well. 

“Hm? Where’s Umbreon and Lycanroc?” Gladion asked, noticing the lack of his Pokémon’s presence. Ash held out the red waist bag to him before pointing ahead. 

“They were fighting Absol, your mum’s Pokémon. Don’t you... don’t you remember throwing it out?”

“Not gonna lie, I can barely remember anything now,” Gladion grumbled. The blonde reached out for his bag, though his eyes flickered towards Ash’s hand. “What happened?”

“Hm?” Ash tilted his head, following his gaze. The scratch on his hand from that Hakamo-o when he was trying to insert the Fairy Memory had become noticeable, though Ash had disregarded it with everything going on. 

“Ohhhh,” the raven muttered, grinning. “Just a little scratch from a Pokémon. No big deal!”

“No big deal?” Gladion scoffed, taking Ash’s hand into his. “You’re gonna have to get this cleaned up.” 

At that, Ash rolled his eyes, ready to retort. After all, Gladion looked way worse. Before he could, though, a sudden roar caught their attention. 

“It’s Solgaleo,” Ash muttered in shock. 

“And everyone else!” Lillie said, eyes lighting up. “Thanks to all of you, my brother’s safe!” She shouted, gratitude in her tone. 

“Lillie, that’s great!” Mallow yelled back. Solgaleo walked over, bending down. 

“Solgaleo, thanks so much,” Ash breathed, rubbing the lion’s face. “Think you could send us back?”

The Pokémon growled in affirmation. Ash, who still had an arm wrapped tightly around Gladion’s frame, beamed and returned all his Pokémon (except Pikachu), the rest following suit. Once Lillie had settled on Solgaleo’s back, Ash helped Gladion up. The raven shared a bright smile with Pikachu before leaping back onto Solgaleo. 

Solgaleo stood up and took off, flying back to where they came from. With a mighty roar, the Ultra Wormhole was reopened, the gang finally entering and returning home. 

“...Ash?” The boy turned around, looking at Gladion expectantly. His head was bowed down, and he seemed to be contemplating something really hard. “I... I owe you my life. I don’t know if I could’ve survived without you there,” he said, arms tightening around Ash’s waist. 

“Don’t sweat it, I’d do it again if I had to,” Ash replied, a blush creeping onto his face. At Gladion’s lack of response, he placed his hands on Gladion’s, hearing the blonde suck in a breath. “I never want to lose you, y’know, so don’t go getting captured by an Ultra Beast again, alright?”

Gladion remained silent, though the single tear that slipped down his face illustrated everything he wanted to say.   
  


* * *

  
Kukui doesn’t think anything could make his heart race faster than seeing the numbers on Burnet’s computer screen increase drastically.

“Is that them?!” He asked hurriedly, the white-haired woman nodding as she typed in a bunch of digits into her computer, fingers flying across the keys. 

“Fixing space topology... maintaining the Ultra Wormhole’s pulse...” she muttered as she clicked ‘enter’. She stood up beside him, staring at the sky. 

“Fingers crossed, let this work,” she whispered.

“Travel safely and soundly,” he added, wringing his wrists together. 

The Wormhole stabilised, nothing happening at first. Just when Kukui was about to start panicking — he actually considered getting Braviary out and flying into the Wormhole himself — a loud roar sounded through the air. 

“They’re back!” He blurted, unable to control the emotions in his voice. Burnet let out a sigh of relief, eyes shining with what looked like tears as well. 

Ash, Gladion, Lillie, Mallow, Lana, Sophocles and Kiawe. Each one of them, all in one piece. Nothing could’ve made him happier. 

The Legendary Pokémon landed with a soft thud, Ash sliding off first. He quickly reached up to help the weaker boy down, supporting him with his hand. 

“We’re back, Professors,” Ash said, grinning all silly at them. The rest of the group made their way down as Kukui scrubbed his eyes quickly. 

“Gladion, you’re safe. Your mother’s been worried sick,” Burnet whispered. The blonde looked up, smiling weakly. 

“Really?” He mumbled, sounding awfully tired. Ash grabbed Gladion by the waist, letting the blonde lean on him for support. Professor Burnet nodded gently in reply. 

Professor Kukui turned to his students, the initial worry on his face fading off into a wide smile. “Well done!” He said proudly, arms stretched out in obvious delight. His students beamed back at him, all sporting the same satisfied expression.

“And that’s because we’re the best team there ever was!” They chorused, giggling ridiculously. 

“Glads? Tired?” Ash asked gently. A worn-out grumble was heard, making Ash chuckle slightly. 

“Just a little...” he replied, eyes fluttering close momentarily. Burnet put down her phone, starting to gather her devices. 

“I called two of Aether’s helicopters over here. Gladion, we’ll get you to the hospital to-”

“Hospital?!” Gladion and Ash said at the same time, shock in both their eyes. “Is it that serious?” Ash asked worriedly, glancing at the blonde beside him. Burnet pursed her lips, staying silent for a moment. 

“He doesn’t look like he has any external injuries other than being really tired, but... We don’t know what UB01 Symbiont might’ve done to Gladion here, so it’s best to get his body checked,” she explained. 

“Nihilego,” Gladion said, his voice getting softer each passing second. “That’s what it told me to call it. Nihilego.”

“The Ultra Beast talked to you while you were fused?!” Ash shrieked, dread flooding his veins at the very thought of it. Gladion sent him another weak smile, making Ash hold onto him tighter. 

“Professor Burnet, I don’t think going to the hospital is needed. I’m sure the mansion is a good enough place for Gladion to rest,” Ash said, his tone firm. Burnet frowned. 

“Are you sure? Gladion might need to take some medication or something, I dunno...”

“He’ll be fine. I’ll be with him,” Ash said, noticing the grateful smile Gladion was sending him. Ash turned to the rest of the group, only to realise Solgaleo was missing. 

“Hey... where’s Solgaleo?” He mumbled. Pikachu leapt onto his shoulder, sniffing the air curiously. There was no sign of the Legendary Pokémon. 

Ash had to shove those thoughts aside — two helicopters had landed next to them. 

“Alright, this one’s for going back to the mansion. Lillie, Ash, Gladion, you’ll be with Burnet. The rest of you come with me, and we’ll go back to the Pokémon School,” Professor Kukui instructed. A chorus of ‘right!’ was heard. 

Ash helped Gladion up onto the helicopter, the boy practically collapsing into his seat. The raven frowned, seeing as Gladion was obviously struggling to stay awake. 

“Get some rest,” he muttered, pushing Gladion’s head so that he rested on his shoulder. The blonde was probably too tired to care, or he had gotten so comfortable with Ash, he willingly allowed the contact. Either way, Gladion fell asleep in a matter of seconds, the steady rise and fall of his chest comforting Ash to no end. He slipped his hand into Gladion’s, holding it like he was afraid to lose it ever again. 

Lillie slid into the seat on the opposite side, giving Ash a small smile. She looked like she wanted to say something, although the girl just kept quiet, the knowing look remaining on her delicate profile. 

Finally, Professor Burnet slipped in, her devices tucked safely at the back of the copter. “We’re ready to go,” she told the pilot once she strapped on her seat belt. The pilot nodded at them through the rearview mirror, starting the helicopter. 

“Ash?” Lillie called, sounding tired as well. Pikachu lay in her lap, already asleep. “I’ll bring Pikachu and the other Pokémon to get checked at the mansion with Hobbes. Could you bring my brother to his room please? It’s the one right in front of mine.”

“Yeah, of course. Thanks,” Ash said, gesturing towards Pikachu. She smiled, eyes darting towards her brother and their interlocked hands. 

“And maybe it would be a good time to tell him how you feel,” she added, turning back to the front. 

Instead of the hot blush that he expected to smack him in the face, Ash only smiled, looking at the boy beside him. “Hm. Maybe I will.”

* * *

“Thank you, we’ll be on our way,” Burnet said, giving the pilot a smile. He saluted in reply. 

Once Lillie and Burnet had gotten off the helicopter, Ash nudged Gladion. “Gladion? We’re here,” he whispered. The blonde grumbled, curling up against Ash, grabbing him by the arm deliriously. 

“No... five more minutes.”

Ash wasn’t looking, but he just  _ knew _ Lillie was laughing at him. Oh, to have your crush snuggled up against you while you tried not to turn into mush. 

“You can get some sleep in your room, come on,” he told the older boy, shaking him harder. Sleepy Gladion was  _ adorable _ , but also, apparently, incredibly stubborn. It ended up with Ash having to wriggle out of Gladion’s grasp before attempting to drag him out of his seat, and then both of them sprawled on the floor because they lost their balance. 

Gladion groaned loudly, making Ash start laughing while Lillie sighed. Burnet helped the two up, obviously trying not to laugh as well. They all turned to Hobbes, who was waiting at the front porch. 

“Master Gladion, Master Ash, Miss Lillie and Professor Burnet. Welcome back,” he said, emotion clear in his voice. Lillie grinned up at him before gesturing to Pikachu in her hands and the other Pokéballs she was holding. 

“Hobbes, do you mind coming with me and Professor Burnet to heal the Pokémon please? Rotom needs to recharge too. Ash will bring Gladion back to his room to rest,” she explained, seeing Hobbes’s eyes flit over to the pair. 

“Why of course, Miss Lillie. If you’ll follow me.” He turned around and headed into the mansion, the rest following suit. 

Ash practically carried the blonde to his room, only stopping to kick the door open. He dragged Gladion to his bed, letting the boy lay down with a soft ‘thud’.

Immediately, Gladion curled up, yawning. Ash found himself yawning too, finally realising how tired he really was. 

“Goodnight, Gladion,” Ash mumbled, leaning back on the chair he was sitting on. Gladion turned to him slightly, raising an eyebrow. 

“Are you sleeping on that chair?” He asked, voice groggy. Ash shrugged and nodded, making him scoff. “No, you’re going to hurt your back like that. The bed’s big enough for the both of us.”

“What? You... don’t mind?” Ash asked hesitantly, walking over to the other side of the bed. 

“Mm. Let’s just rest for an hour or something,” was Gladion’s reply. Right when Ash climbed onto the bed, Gladion had gone out like a light. 

“Just an hour, hm?” Ash mumbled, reaching out hesitantly and placing a finger on Gladion’s cheek.

The raven smiled, seeing how relaxed and calm the blonde looked when he was asleep. With that, he laid down carefully, finally allowing his tiredness to take over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> gladion joking about almost dying is a mood


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> everything is going to be okay now... or so they thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> haha nihilego taking revenge go brrrr  
> i literally don't know how hospitals work so if this chapter is inaccurate i deeply apologise  
> also the chapter title is finally mentioned in here because im so big brain  
> it's like 1am here im sorry

**_Gladion... hello._ ** ****

The blonde awoke with a jump, eyes darting around frantically. The familiar sight of rocks and poison made Gladion's stomach churn with fear — he was back in Ultra Deep Sea.

Standing, or well, floating in front of him was Nihilego. It stared down at him, and despite having no eyes, the stare brought intense terror to the boy. 

**_Now, there is no need to be afraid._** It swooped in closer. A tentacle reached out and brushed against Gladion's cheek, the boy recoiling in an instant. 

“I’m not afraid of you. What the fuck do you want?” Gladion spat, trying to stand up. He gulped nervously, contradicting his words as he realised that he couldn’t stand up. He was literally stuck on the floor like glue. 

**_Think of me as nothing, Gladion. I am just here to take back what I claimed._ **

“You don’t claim me.”

That was obviously the wrong thing to say because a wave of poison was shot at him. They dodged his face narrowly, making the boy suck in a breath. 

**_Do you really... want to fight me?_ **

Yes, oh, how he did. Though it seemed a little unfair that he was chained to the ground while Nihilego had all the advantage. 

The Ultra Beast let out a laugh, making Gladion realise he had spoken out loud. It leered over his body, tentacles swaying around threateningly. 

**_You haven’t really escaped from me. The remaining neurotoxins in your brain will keep spreading throughout your whole body, no matter how hard you try._ **

There was that stupid word again. Neurotoxin — what the hell was that supposed to do? Gladion was tougher than some dumb poison. He had to stay strong. To protect his family.

**_Your sister hates you. Your mother doesn’t care. Ash never gave a shit. You’re delusional, thinking they could help you._ **

“Shut... shut the fuck up...” Gladion hissed, the words bringing him a headache. An uncomfortable lump built up in his throat the more he dwelled on it. 

**_You heard them yourself. Lillie hates you. Ash trusted you, not trust, but trusted. You don’t mean anything to them... not anymore._ **

...ouch. That hurt to hear, a lot more than he expected it to. He fell silent, lips pressed in a thin line. The Ultra Beast was right.

Nihilego snickered to itself, going directly above Gladion and causing panic to strike in his chest. 

_Not again. Not the pain again._

“Stay. Away,” Gladion growled, voice trembling despite his best efforts to keep it steady. Nihilego ignored him, sinking lower and lower. 

He couldn’t move, he couldn’t run, he couldn’t scream. He was trapped, completely, utterly trapped and he had nowhere to go. 

**_You can’t escape from me._ **

**_-_ **

“NO!” Gladion yelled, shooting up. Pain stabbed him in the stomach, though he ignored it, too focused on trying to calm his breathing. His hand reached up to touch his face — sweat dripped from his forehead and his heart drummed loudly against his chest. 

He couldn’t recall the last time he had been this afraid, the last time he had felt this helpless. Even when he was trying to calm Type: Null, he had never been so frightened to the point of screaming. 

“Gladion..?”

The voice made him jump harder than he should’ve, his pulse quickening before settling down again. Ash propped himself up sleepily, glancing out at the window where the moon hung high. 

“Huh, guess we slept past an hour,” he mumbled groggily, chuckling to himself. He turned to Gladion. “Are you hungry or something? We could go- huh?!” He stopped the instant he saw Gladion’s expression. The blonde assumed he looked pretty fucked up. 

Ash reached over to his side and turned on the lamp, a dim light filling the room. His brows knitted as the older trainer refused to look him in the eyes.

“Gladion? What’s wrong, what happened?” Ash whispered, his soft voice soothing the blonde a lot more than he expected it to. Gladion didn’t answer, though Ash seemed to understand instantly. 

“...was it a nightmare? About... Nihilego, perhaps?” The moment he sucked in a breath, Gladion knew that gave away everything. 

“How’d you guess?” Gladion asked, watching as Ash’s gaze softened. 

“Believe it or not, I’ve had some crazy dreams too. Not all of them are good.” Gladion glanced away, his vision blurring. 

“You’re crying,” Ash said, reaching out to wipe the tears off his face. Gladion couldn’t even force himself to blush if he tried — he was too distracted. His hands were shaking so much and he couldn’t control it. 

“Sorry, sorry. Go back to sleep,” Gladion hissed, trying to calm his stupid hand. His brain didn’t have time to process it until it happened — Ash took his hand in his and brought him into a hug, arms tightening around his body. 

“Shh... Nihilego can’t hurt you anymore. You’re safe, and if anything threatens you, I’ll be here to fight it off,” the raven mumbled, rubbing circles in his back. The comfort made him break, quiet sobs leaving his throat as he buried his face into Ash’s shoulder. He couldn’t remember the last time he had touched someone, let alone hug them. The warmth of the embrace was a lot more addicting than he remembered. 

“Why a-are you doing this?” Gladion cried softly, Nihilego’s words yelling at him like a broken record. “You don’t even _care_.”

“What?” Ash asked, laughing a little. “What _ever_ made you think that?”

“I broke... your trust in me. That’s what you said,” Gladion mumbled shamefully, feeling the familiar blush creep up his neck. Ash pulled away from the hug, confirming Gladion’s suspicions. He was only doing this to be nice; because he felt obliged to; because Gladion was his best friend’s brother-

“...Gladion,” Ash said, voice cracking, “you’re so silly.” He cleared his throat, looking into his eyes as he held onto his shoulders firmly. 

“Maybe I should finish that sentence. I trusted you, yes, but...” The raven took a deep breath, a shaky grin making its way on his face. “I still do.”

The blonde’s face flared up, suddenly feeling much too close to the other. He tried to shy away but to no success. Ash had a magnetic sort of pull towards him, and Gladion wasn’t able to run away. Not that he even bothered to try anymore. 

“Gladion,” Ash called, voice dripping with concern. “Are you okay?”

 _More than okay_ _,_ Gladion thought, affection swirling in his chest. The blonde couldn’t help himself, he wanted to stay like this forever — Ash holding him tight in the dim light, telling him that everything would be alright. He never wanted this moment to end.

_You idiot, you were never jealous of Ash for being close to Lillie... it was the other way round._

The realisation made him more flustered than he could imagine. Ash obviously noticed though he chose not to say anything, instead humming a laugh softly. That sound itself was music to the blonde’s ears. 

“Wanna talk about the nightmare?”

“...mm. I don’t remember,” Gladion lied. “Stupid neurotoxins,” he added quietly. The raven didn’t seem to believe him, but, bless his soul, he didn’t try to push or force it out of him. 

“Do you... do you want to go back to sleep?” Ash asked, hands letting go of his shoulders. Gladion found himself missing the warmth immediately, though he tried to hide his crave for contact. 

“No,” Gladion mumbled, his usually rough voice coming out shy and soft. Ash cocked his head to the side, the gentle smile back on his face. 

“Then what do you want to do?” He asked again, leaning forward. The blonde’s heart hammered wildly in his chest as the light from the night lamp cast a soft glow over Ash’s profile, making him look even more perfect than he usually did. 

Their lips were inches apart.

Unknowingly, Gladion reached forward and grasped onto Ash’s hand, the raven letting out a surprised noise before a blush hit his face. Gladion couldn’t see himself, but he guessed that he was equally as red.

“Hm?” Ash hummed, reminding him that he hadn’t answered his question yet. A shy smile made its way into his face.

“I-“

Gladion found himself unable to answer as he doubled over in pain, mouth open in a silent scream. Ash flinched, eyes widening in shock. 

“What? What is it?!” He asked desperately. Gladion clutched his stomach, eyes clenched shut. His entire body was tensed up, increasing Ash’s worry. 

“Glads, listen to me. I’m gonna lift up your shirt to see what’s wrong, so you gotta remove your hand. Can you do that?” Ash asked, fingers rubbing his shoulder blades at an attempt to ease some pain. Gladion nodded stiffly, trying to ignore the stabbing feeling in his stomach that was slowly spreading up his chest. 

Ash lifted his hoodie up, the tiniest gasp leaving his throat. “What.. is it?” Gladion asked, his voice shaking. His eyes brimmed with tears, blurring his vision even more. 

The green-eyed trainer glanced down to see what Ash was staring at. His stomach churned again, mind going hazy. 

A large purple bruise that was darkening with each passing second, slowly spreading from the middle of his stomach to his whole torso. 

“Gladion? Gladion, uh- don’t panic, shit I-” A string of curse words left Ash’s mouth as the blonde raised an eyebrow at how fluent the sentence was. The situation would’ve been amusing if it wasn’t for the pain. 

A wave of drowsiness took over his brain, similar to his experience with Nihilego. He felt his body lose control of itself, arms going limp. 

“ _Fuck_ ,” Ash whispered, blood running cold the moment Gladion had fallen forward and into his arms. “Fuck, fuck, _fuck_ what do I do?”

Right at the moment, a knock came from the door. Frankly, Ash was too busy worrying to give a shit. He lifted Gladion up by his hands, carrying the blonde and doing his best not to touch the purple area. The door opened, a familiar girl showing her face. 

“Hey, you two, Pikachu and the other- Ash? Gladion?!” Lillie froze at the sight of Ash carrying her brother, who seemed to have fainted in his arms. 

“I don’t know what happened,” Ash said, answering the questions flying in her brain, “but we need to get him to the hospital. I think it’s got something to do with Nihilego’s poison.”

Lillie blanched before nodding, her face morphing into that of steely determination. She opened the door wider and allowed Ash to run out, sprinting as fast as he could towards the mansion entrance. 

Lillie caught up to him, yelling desperately. “Hobbes! Professor Burnet?! HOBBES!” 

The butler arrived at the scene as quick as a flash. His eyes skimmed over the teens in front of him, quickly catching on to what happened. “Oh my... Professor Burnet left to go to Aether Paradise already. I’ll call the chauffeur,” he said softly. Ash could hear the consternation and worry laced in the old man’s voice. 

Five minutes later, the familiar black limo rolled up outside the mansion, the door opened by Hobbes. Pikachu had reclaimed his place on Ash’s shoulder, poking Gladion’s face worriedly. The sight had come as quite a shock for the little Pokémon.

The chauffeur leaned out of the window, taking a look at Gladion. His expression turned grim, and he nodded at Ash. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll get you there, pronto,” he said.

Rushing into the limo, Ash and Lillie sat down, not even bothering with the seat belts. Once Hobbes shut the door, the limo zipped away faster than Pikachu’s Quick Attack. 

Ash glanced towards the girl at his side who was sporting the same upset expression she had when Gladion had been first captured. She was holding onto a bag and four Pokéballs — no doubt Snowy, Umbreon, Lycanroc and Silvally. Ash’s other Pokémon were sleeping, Hobbes had explained that they needed the rest. 

“D’ya think he’ll be alright?” He asked, looking at the seemingly lifeless boy in his arms. His skin was getting paler by the second, except for the purple bruise on his stomach. They were sitting in a very awkward position — Lillie was squished at the corner while Ash held Gladion up, doing his best to make sure he wouldn’t cause the blonde any more harm than necessary. 

“I’m... of course he will.”

“Don’t lie to me, Lillie.”

Tears were visible in her eyes as she gripped onto the fabric of her dress. She had changed out of her ‘Z-Powered Form', blonde hair cascading down her back. “In all h-honesty, I can’t be sure. We don’t know what Nihilego’s poison does,” she whispered, gripping her dress tighter. “Gladion himself said he can’t remember much.”

“Yeah. He said he forgot... though maybe... maybe he just doesn’t want to tell us,” Ash realised, looking at the boy in his arms yet again. He wouldn’t have been surprised if that was the case — Gladion had never been one to share his feelings; he’d rather suffer alone until the problem was solved. 

“Pika-pikachu!”

“Oh, we’re here.” Ash was mildly impressed at the speed. 

The door was opened, and Ash rushed out, shouting a thanks to the chauffeur. His arms were getting terribly tired — he didn’t want to risk dropping Gladion on the floor and injuring the boy further. 

Lillie caught up to him, the four Pokéballs placed in the small pink bag she had carried to the other side of the Ultra Wormhole. She helped him open the door, the two rushing in.

“HELP!” Lillie screamed, attracting the attention of practically everyone in the lobby. No sooner than a minute later, Gladion was strapped onto a bed-like contraption and being wheeled into an emergency room. 

Lillie and Ash were about to follow the doctor when they were stopped. “This is the emergency waiting room. Only family will be allowed to enter.”

“But I’m his sister!” Lillie yelled, tears running down her face. The doctor glanced at the girl, seeing the resemblance between her and Gladion. 

“Alright. And you, sir?” He turned to look at Ash, who stiffened uncomfortably. 

“I- uh...”

“Please, doctor. He was there when this incident happened. He knows better than anyone what might have caused it,” Lillie said. Pikachu nodded in agreement. The doctor shook his head, sighing.

“I’m sorry, but our rules strictly state that only fami-“

“I-I’LL CALL MY MOTHER HERE! SHE’S THE PRESIDENT OF AETHER FOUNDATION!” Lillie spat perilously, Ash glancing at her in shock.

“Lillie, it’s- it’s okay.”

They looked at the doctor, who was staring at Lillie in bafflement. Lillie gave him a sharp glare, resembling Lusamine quite a bit. 

“I... see. This way, please.” He stood to the side and bowed, letting the two walk in the room. 

“Holy shit, are you royalty?” Ash asked the girl seriously. She smiled lightly, shrugging. 

“Desperate times call for desperate measures,” was her reply. 

A nurse rushed up to them, clipboard in her hand. “Thank goodness. Can you tell me his personal details, along with what he was doing around two hours or so before this? Oh, and I’ll need his parent’s or guardian’s consent in case we need to operate surgery on the patient.”

Ash’s heart clenched at the word ‘surgery’. He should’ve listened to Burnet, shouldn’t he have? She was right — there was still so much they didn’t know about Nihilego. It was stupid of him to believe that everything would be alright. 

“I’ll call our Mother,” Lillie piped up, taking out her phone. The nurse nodded, turning to Ash. 

“O-oh. Right. Um, his name is Gladion Aether.” The nurse’s hand stiffened visibly when she was writing this down. 

“President Lusamine is his parent?” She whispered, turning to Lillie. The girl was speaking frantically, a hand covering her mouth to muffle what she was saying. Ash nodded, continuing anyway. 

“Yeah. He’s 17, born on the sixth of January. Um, we kind of got into a huge mess with this... unknown Pokémon that fused with Gladion and injected a bunch of poison and stuff into his system.

“We got him out of there, but I think the poison still remained. He seemed fine other than the fact that he was physically exhausted, so we went home. We were sleeping and he woke up and then he started hurting before I realised there was this huge purple- purple _thing_ spreading around his stomach-“ Ash’s breath hitched, the nurse writing everything down hurriedly. 

“And?” She prompted. Pikachu nuzzled his cheek in comfort, trying to calm his trainer down. 

“Uh, Gladion fainted. I think it was from pain overdose or something, I dunno. But that was when we brought him here.”

“Can you tell me more about this Pokémon?”

“That’s- that’s the problem. I can’t. We don’t know anything about it other than the fact that it’s a poison- and rock type, probably? Gladion said he didn’t remember anything. Oh, and he said he was also able to communicate with the Ultra- I mean, Pokémon, when they were fused.

The nurse pursed her lips, a frown on her face. “Alright, I won’t ask you too much. But I have one last question. Do you know anything about the poison you claim to be injected in Gladion Aether’s system?”

“I don’t think so...” Ash muttered, racking his brain for anything Gladion said that could’ve hinted at what happened to him. 

_“Wanna talk about the nightmare?”_

_“...mm. I don’t remember. Stupid neurotoxins.”_

“Neurotoxins,” Ash blurted out, eyes widening. The nurse stared at him with an unamused expression. 

“Are you sure? That’s something that disrupts the nervous system and causes someone to go out of control. It’s quite serious.”

_Well, that sounds about right._

“If it helps, Gladion was kinda... possessed? By this whole Pokémon. He turned completely crazy and it took quite a bit to snap him out of it,” Ash said, recalling the Z-Move. The nurse still looked disbelieving, making Ash sigh in frustration. 

“Look, you asked me a question, I gave you what I knew! If you people don’t hurry up, the poison or whatever in his body might spread! He mumbled something about neurotoxins after that nightmare-" _Crap. Was I supposed to reveal that? Not sure if Gladion would appreciate it._

Her expression softened, and she nodded. “Okay. May I know your name, and the girl’s too?”

Ash was having some seriously mixed feelings about this nurse. “Ash Ketchum,” he said tersely. “And that’s his sister, Lillie Aether.”

“Thank you. Wait out here while we perform some tests on Gladion Aether. We’ll do what we can.”

The raven narrowed his eyes, nodding. Lillie had just finished her call — she walked up towards him and sat down on the waiting bench. Ash followed suit, sighing deeply. 

“How’d it go?” Ash asked. Lillie chuckled, no actual humour in her tone. 

“Mother gave permission for them to operate anything they think is necessary on Gladion. She’s informed Professor Kukui and Hobbes. We’ll have the limo ready to pick us up anytime, so-“

“I’m staying.”

“Huh?”

“I’m not leaving until I know he’s alright.”

Lillie smiled sadly, nodding. “Okay. I’m... glad there’s someone he can trust to stick by him. He'd probably prefer you than me, anyway.” She laughed sourly, guilt tugged at Ash’s heart to hear that. 

“Lillie, don’t say that. He knows you love him, and he loves you a lot too.”

“Pika-pika!”

Lillie giggled, shaking her head. “You two... thanks Ash, Pikachu.” She bowed her head, eyes cast down. Her hand reached into her bag and she pulled out a normal Pokéball. 

In an instant, Snowy materialised in front of them, stretching slightly. The Alolan Vulpix leapt onto Lillie’s lap, tail wagging as she stared up at her trainer with innocent blue eyes. 

“Snowy,” Lillie said, beaming at her beloved Pokémon. 

“Vul!”

Ash wasn’t stupid — he could see how Lillie’s smile didn’t quite match her eyes. Snowy seemed to realise it too, her expression morphing into that of concern. 

“Vulpix?” Snowy asked hesitantly, sounding exactly like she did when Lillie teleported back from seeing her brother and Silvally after the sleepover. Lillie reached out to pet Snowy’s fur, sighing. 

“I’m fine. Thing’s will be okay soon. They always end up fine-”

_Bang!_

“WHERE’S MY SON?!”

The two whipped around, seeing Lusamine standing at the door, her expression looking like a mix of anger and guilt. 

“Mother!” Lillie cried, standing up. Lusamine stormed in, her heels clicking loudly. 

“Well?” She demanded, looking at the two expectantly. 

“He’s... in there. They’re doing some tests to find out what’s going on. I gave them as much information I could without revealing the whole Ultra Beasts thing cause I wasn’t sure if I could,” Ash said, pointing to the white door. Gratitude flashed in the woman’s eyes when he said that. She nodded, mumbling a small ‘thank you.’

Another woman walked in, Ash recognising the white hair and amber eyes anywhere. She was soon accompanied by Professor Kukui and Wicke. “Professor Burnet, Professor Kukui!” He said, running up to them. Without thinking, the boy was enveloped in a hug by Burnet, burying himself in her arms. 

“Y-you were right all along. We should’ve brought him to the hospital first thing, stack. This is all my fault,” he whispered, shuddering. Ash felt her hand rub his back soothingly.

“Don’t say that. None of us would’ve predicted this happening, it’s not your fault,” she said softly, letting Ash cry in her arms. Pikachu chipped in every now and then with a soft coo, though it was mainly Burnet and Kukui doing the calming. 

The white door Ash had pointed at earlier slid open and the same nurse walked out. Her eyes flitted over the scene and she clicked her tongue. “You must be Miss Lusamine. I’ll skip the introductions and get straight to the point.”

“We examined the substance in Gladion’s body. Neurotoxins are indeed a part of it.” She paused, looking at Ash. “Though there are other unknown compartments to this poison. We suspect it has something to do with psychic type moves as well, but there’s really nothing we can confirm. This situation is certainly one of a kind, and with the lack of information...” she sighed, clicking her tongue again. “Any questions?”

“What’s happening now?” Lillie asked timidly, gesturing at the room. The nurse shook her head, looking down at her clipboard. 

“I deeply apologise, but we really don’t know what to do as we’ve never seen a case like this before. Right now, our nurses are working on getting as much of the poison out of his system, though there is a _lot_ of it. I guarantee you that our nurses are very skilled and we will be doing our best,” she said, her voice filled with pity. 

Lusamine seemed frozen in shock — the President was just staring straight ahead, no reaction whatsoever. The nurse sent her a concerned glance before nodding. 

“That’ll be all, I presume. You may wait out here or leave first, though at least one needs to stay in case anything happens—”

A sudden scream ripped through the air, raw and anguished. Ash’s heart nearly leapt out of his throat — he recognised that scream. 

“GLADION!” He yelled, dashing towards the room so fast even Pikachu fell off his shoulder. The raven barged into the room, seeing Gladion hunched over on the bed, hands clutching his stomach in the same fashion as before. 

“No, NO! STAY AWAY FROM ME!” The blonde cried, tears actually streaming down from his face. His eyes were screwed shut, creases on his forehead increasing with every second. Ash ignored the nurses and doctors’ protests, he ran towards the bed, placing a hand on his shoulder desperately. 

“Gladion, listen to me! Listen- it’s Ash! I-“ he was interrupted by his own shout of shock when Gladion seized his hand, gripping onto the wrist tightly. 

Gladion’s eyes peeled open, the usually green irises a complete black. Ash tried not to sound fearful, though it was impossible. His eyes darted down to Gladion’s stomach where he knew the ‘bruise’ still remained. 

Gladion pulled the tube and needle device out of his arm, making Ash wince as blood dripped out of the wound. He looked closer, only to realise the dark ink that was mixed with the blood. 

Nihilego’s ink. 

Gladion grabbed Ash’s other hand, rendering the raven completely unable to move. His lips curled into a smirk, cunning and sharp. 

“What’s going on?” Ash asked the boy, wriggling in his grasp. “Gladion?”

But it was not Gladion that replied — it was that familiar deep, scratchy voice that struck fear in Ash’s chest.

**_“You won’t escape from me.”_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oof.  
> :)


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> gladion continues to struggle against nihilego, lusamine is a guilty mother, wicke ships satoglad and the professors are gonna get their shit together and Do Something

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i can’t believe they made sophocles bring back a rock crystal to experiment on and then said nothing on the topic. so here’s my take on it actually having a use

His lungs felt like they were on fire. 

The pain from his torso had spread all the way up to his chest. It felt like a thousand hot knives stabbing at his organs continuously, a searing pain resulting from it. His vision was hazy, so hazy that he could barely see what was in front of him. His hands were gripping onto something, though his thoughts were a mess as well. 

“I’ll make you pay.” An eerie voice filled his ears, the blonde seemingly not realising that the voice came from his own throat. Gladion’s vision cleared slightly — just enough to let him see the brief outline of a body. He could hear frantic voices in the background, though it all seemed very distant and fuzzy. 

“Gladion!” That voice was familiar. It was gentle and kind, and it felt like heaven to even _hear_ that warm voice fill his ears-

 _Wait, that’s my name._ Gladion opened his mouth to answer, only to feel something clamp his mouth shut. That action brought another agonising stab to his guts, making him cry out internally. Something jerked — it took him a while to realise that was his own wrist. 

_What’s... going on?_

The blonde hunched forward with his eyes squeezed shut, still vaguely aware of his hand grabbing onto something. Someone’s wrist, judging by the struggle they were putting up. 

“Gladion, please!” There was that voice again. He tried to glance up and force his eyes open, catching a glimpse of black hair and brown eyes. The sight was awfully familiar, and it made his stomach churn. 

“I-“ he began, only to feel fire rise in his throat again. Tears formed at the corner of his eyes, his body unable to take the pain of it all. It felt like something was trying to engulf him, trying to squeeze him to death by twisting and punching and stabbing and doing _anything_ to destroy his body. 

He felt like a little puppet. 

And boy, did he hate it.

An animalistic noise left his throat, one he never would’ve expected. Sudden light filled his eyes, his vision going completely colourless. The only thing he could see was black and white. 

A red light came into view. Gladion could tell that the red light was an outline of someone’s body. He flinched, withdrawing his hand from their wrist.

Something tugged at his gut again, a heavyweight settling at the bottom of his stomach. Gladion could feel it — someone trying to overtake his body. He pushed the foreign feeling away, though it just kept coming back. 

His hand drew back, fully prepared to punch whatever that came near him. “STAY AWAY FROM ME!” 

“Gladion! Gladion, can you hear me?” He wanted to respond, but he knew the pain that would come with, so he kept his mouth shut. 

“It’s me, Ash! You know me, right?” Came the desperate voice once more. 

_Ash._ Something clicked in Gladion’s mind. Memories of him and the raven trainer flooded his brain, from the fiery battles and bright smiles to the quiet nights and the intense arguments. This was _Ash_ in front of him, the only boy who has managed to worm his way into Gladion’s heart and make him open up about his problems. 

Gladion attempted to reach out to the voice, his hand rising slowly. However, an invisible force seemed to shove his hand back into place, a loud cry leaving his throat at that. 

The same eerie voice from before filled his head, echoing around tauntingly. **_You’re under my control, and you’ll do as I say. You’ve never really gotten rid of me. I’ll make you pay for what you’ve done._ **

Gladion placed all of his willpower into pushing the voice away, though he could feel his energy getting drained all over again. He could hear Ash’s worried voice calling out to him, spewing a bunch of words that he couldn't catch, mixed with a more feminine voice that he also recognised. 

The boy let out a final groan, muscles going limp as he collapsed onto the floor. 

* * *

“Brother!” Lillie cried, first to react when Gladion fell to the floor. Ash caught him, barely, but he still did. He quickly leaned down, placing his ear next to the blonde’s nose. 

“He’s breathing...” Ash muttered, his own breaths quickening along with his sentence. “It’s really faint, but he’s breathing.”

One of the doctors darted forward, scooping up a bit of that mysterious black liquid that had dripped onto the floor into a test tube. He sent them a nod, brushing his coat. 

“I’ll bring this to our Scientists team in the basement. Gracie, Selene, do what you need to do, just make sure he _keeps breathing_.” He then turned to the two teens, sending them an apologetic look. “Sir, Miss, I’m afraid you’ll have to leave. He needs to be confined.” He left the room promptly, increasing Ash’s annoyance. 

“I’m not leaving,” Ash snapped, eyes crazed as he held onto the boy. “I’m not leaving until he opens his eyes.”

“Sir, please. We understand that you’re worried-“ a nurse — presumably Gracie — said, only to be interrupted by the raven’s angry shout. 

“No you don’t! Stop lying to me! I don’t care what you tell me, I. Will. _Stay_.” Ash looked at the other nurse, eyes brimming with furious tears. His hands were shaking, much like Gladion’s would when he was battling or just plain determined. 

“Maybe... it’ll be okay for him to stay. It’s not like we’re operating anything,” the other nurse, Selene, muttered. Gracie was already setting up one of the machines, sighing deeply. 

“Yeah, that is true. Alright, Mr. Ketchum. Miss Aether, you?”

Lillie seemed to shrink under the two nurses’ piercing stare. “I’ll... be outside,” she whispered hoarsely. Pikachu leapt from her shoulder to Ash’s, nuzzling the boy comfortingly. 

The raven worriedly watched as Lillie retreated out the door, a solemn expression on her face. He wanted to follow after her and make sure the girl was okay, but at the same time, he never wanted to leave Gladion’s side. 

“Alright, just because you’re here, doesn’t mean you can just do anything,” Gracie said, placing a hand on her hip. “Mr. Aether’s hooked up now, but you’ll have to keep a distance. No touching. We don’t want you getting infected as well.”

Ash nodded defeatedly, knowing that she was right. Pikachu jumped down from his shoulders, settling on his lap. A worried ‘pikapi’ came out of his throat, the Pokémon patting his trainer anxiously. 

Ash smiled down at him, the smile not quite reaching his eyes. “Gladion’s gonna be okay... right?”

A small noise came from the doorway. Ash glanced over to see Silvally, peeking in in a shy manner. The nurses looked stunned, turning to Ash for an explanation.

“It’s one of Gladion’s Pokémon,” Ash said, holding an arm out. Silvally charged towards him, rubbing its head on his arm. Ash couldn’t help the tiny smile blossoming on his face. 

“If you look so hopeful, I guess I should be more hopeful too. Gladion’s pretty strong. I know he can fight off Nihilego,” Ash mumbled, chuckling at the approving grunt that left Silvally. 

Ash turned to the blonde lying on the bed, his face deathly pale in contrast to the purple bruise he knew still remained. If he could, Ash would’ve taken twice the amount of pain that Gladion had faced, if only to make sure the boy would never hurt anymore. 

“Man, I’m a mess,” he said to himself, sighing deeply. 

“Pika!” The yellow Pokémon cried, nodding sagely. 

“Shut up, Pikachu.” 

* * *

_Click... clack... click... clack..._

Lusamine paced around the hospital floor, the sound of her six-inch heels tapping on the floor growing louder and louder with each passing second. 

There was just so much _shit_ happening at the moment. There was no other word to describe it, it was just too much shit. 

Faba was still missing; her daughter was still crying; her colleagues were still shooting her stupidly worried looks. Her son was still suffering from an unknown substance being injected into his body by a freaking Ultra Beast. Even worse was the guilt that came along with that. Lusamine knew it herself — if she wasn’t so invested in learning about the Ultra Beasts, this wouldn’t have happened. 

Of course, it was easier to pin the blame on Faba as he was the one who opened up the Ultra Wormhole. Twice. 

Still, Faba had done so to impress her and to get a better position. The fact that summoning an Ultra Beast _would_ have impressed the woman was what made it revolting to think about. 

_Look at you, first losing your husband and now losing your son. To the same damn thing. How fucking pathetic._

“Lusamine, you need to sit down and rest.” The familiar sharp yet gentle voice filled her ears. Sure, Professor Burnet is a scientist, and she worked closely with the Foundation because of her expertise in Ultra Wormholes. Yet, it never felt like she really was working under Lusamine. The two women have always treated each other like best friends more than anything. 

“Mm. I’ll do that later,” Lusamine grumbled back, turning to face the door where Gladion was. 

“You’re worrying yourself sick.” _As if that wasn’t obvious enough._

“I’m fine. Can we get back to the current situation at hand?” The President snapped irritatedly. 

“Mother.” That soft voice always touched her heart. “Professor Burnet’s right. You should sit down, at least,” Lillie mumbled, eyes downcast. Lusamine flinched before sighing, sinking into the seat next to her daughter. It did admittedly feel good to finally sit down after standing up for so long, though.

“I just wish we could find out what’s causing this. Then we could come up with a possible solution. The Aether Foundation is rich and full of resources — the only thing at risk right now is its reputation.”

“What do you mean?” Lillie asked timidly. Lusamine looked surprised at the question. 

“Well, Ultra Beasts aren’t exactly normal, for one. If it gets to the public that we’ve been doing experiments and trying to summon them… it won’t be good, to say the least.” She shared a look with Wicke and Burnet, who were both frowning as well. 

“That’s why I was thankful towards Ash for not revealing everything. Aether Foundation is a pretty respected organisation in the Alola region. Once word gets out, who knows what’ll happen.” 

Professor Burnet hummed. “We can’t exactly go in there and ask for a sample of that poison without any suspicion. The doctors in the basement are already experimenting too, so that’s no use.” She sighed before something clicked in her brain. 

“I’ve got it! Kukui, follow me. I’ll go back to Aether Paradise and start analysing it once I get it! Quick, let’s go!” The white-haired woman grabbed the other Professor, pulling him along and ignoring his protests. 

Wicke let out a little giggle, shaking her head. “She’s always been very bright and witty with her ideas. On a lighter note, those two seem really close, hm? I think Kukui really likes our Burnet.” Lusamine couldn’t help but laugh too. Wicke, ever the romantic. 

“Maybe. They’ve worked together quite a few times as fellow researchers. I guess it wouldn’t be too surprising.”

The door slid open, the chimaera-like Pokémon appearing. It let out a soft growl, trotting over to where Lillie quietly sat. Snowy chirped in greeting, still snuggled in her trainer’s arms. 

“Hm?” Lillie looked up, eyes flashing in recognition. “Oh, Silvally! Hello. I assume Ash fell asleep or something, so you’re back here?” She took out a rainbow Pokébean, feeding it to Silvally. Lusamine watched as the Pokémon munched the bean in appreciation, nuzzling the blonde happily. 

“Ash is so sweet for doing all this! Him and Gladion are so close too, I really feel the romanticism in their interactions!” Wicke cooed, clapping joyfully. 

Woah, woah woah woah. _Gladion and Ash?_ The confusion must’ve shown on the President’s face, for both Wicke and Lillie raised an eyebrow at her. 

“Don’t tell me you don’t know, Mother? Those two have been pining after each other ever since, well, forever,” Lillie said in her matter-of-fact voice. 

“ _Pining?_ I don’t… actually, that’s kind of true, come to think of it. Though I never would’ve expected Gladion to… well...” she trailed off, having to stop herself from laughing at the irony. It really was a teensy bit hard to believe, especially with how isolated and distant Gladion could be.

“You should see the way he acts around Ash, Mother,” Lillie said, eyes shining with fondness. “The way he looks at him, the way he smiles, the way his voice switches to something so soft and sweet. His entire demeanour changes around Ash. It’s adorable! It… reminds me of when we were kids.” A bittersweet smile graced her lips. 

“Ash is a good person,” Wicke added, looking at Lusamine carefully as she said so, “he brings out the best in Gladion, in both battling and personality. They would make such a cute pair! Don’t you agree?”

“It’s not that I _disapprove,_ far from it!” Lusamine said defensively, having the feeling that that was what they were hinting at. “Ash is a wonderful boy, and if my son’s happy, so am I. I just… wow.” Lillie shook her head, giggling quietly as her long blonde hair spiralled down her shoulder.

“You’re so very oblivious, Mother.”

Lusamine just huffed, relishing in the light laughter of her daughter. 

* * *

“Burnet, you still haven’t told me where we’re going, or for what purpose,” Kukui deadpanned. The woman was typing on one of her devices frantically, ignoring the whines from her companion. 

The two had gotten on an Aether Helicopter that Burnet had summoned. Apparently, she keyed in the address beforehand when booking the copter, preventing Kukui from knowing where they were going. 

“Bur _net!”_ He complained, practically vibrating from curiosity. She turned and gave him a flat look. 

“Questions later, Kukui. I’m busy.”

Right when Kukui was about to open his mouth and retort, the helicopter started descending. Kukui looked out of the window and scanned his environment, recognising where they were. 

“Sophocles’s house..?” He asked. Burnet hummed in confirmation. 

“Correct. Hurry, we need to do this as fast as we can,” she said.

"You're not even telling me _what_ we're doing," Kukui mumbled, to which Burnet promptly ignored.

The pair walked up towards the house, Burnet reaching up and knocking firmly. A few seconds passed before a very sleepy ‘I’ll get it!’ was heard from inside the house. 

The door opened, revealing the familiar orange-haired boy, Togedemaru by his side. He blinked a few times before rubbing his eyes, disbelief painted all over his face. 

“Heyyy, Sophocles,” Kukui started, laughing awkwardly. 

“Professor? Why are you standing at our doorstep, at _12.17am?_ I’m not dreaming, am I?” He mumbled. Professor Burnet gave a friendly chuckle, shaking her head. 

“You’re not. Though, we’re here because we have a special request from you. I’d like to obtain that stone you collected from the Ultra Deep Sea. It’s important, it might lead to a new scientific discovery,” she said, emphasising on the last few phrases. Sophocles still looked too sleepy to comprehend most of it. 

“Yeah, sure. It’s in my room, ‘m gonna go get it.”

“Great! Thanks,” Burnet said with a relieved smile on her face. Kukui turned to her, adjusting his white cap. 

“What’s the rock gotta do with anything?” He asked.

“Well, I got some recounts of what happened from Lillie and Rotom at the mansion before this whole thing happened. They told me how Nihilego was able to control the rocks and stuff by using its tentacles and stabbing into the ground. I figured that the rocks could have something to do with how Nihilego works — or maybe its typing? Whatever, something like that. Besides, it’s the same colour,” she explained, amber eyes twinkling. Kukui stared at her, thoroughly impressed. 

“That’s… really smart. Holy shit, Burnet,” he said, tone bathed in admiration. She let out a bashful giggle, shrugging. 

Right at that moment, Sophocles appeared again, the indigo rock in his hand. “Here,” he mumbled, holding it up. Burnet took it gratefully. 

“Thanks so much, Sophocles. I’m so sorry for waking you up,” she said. The boy made a noncommittal noise, yawning. 

“Off to bed again, Sophocles. G’night,” Kukui said, watching as his student sent him a tired smile before closing the door, probably trotting off to bed. He turned to Burnet, a small smirk on his face. 

“Would you allow me to accompany you to your lab and experiment on the _very_ important rock?” He asked. She grinned back. 

“But of course, Kukui. Two brains are better than one. We should hurry, who knows what might happen to poor Gladion.” Their cheeky expressions morphed into steely determination as they both nodded at the other, rushing to the helicopter still waiting for them. Once their seatbelts were on, the two shared a smile. 

“To Aether Paradise, fast as you can.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> they professors figure something out together (they have a bonding moment), and lillie has to convince ash that his feelings are returned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my chapter summaries are so dumb LMAO
> 
> the amount of random research i did only to apply 10% of it in this chapter is wild. please note that there is no science behind what i wrote btw LOL, i am not a sciencey person and idk what i’m doing honestly
> 
> also, i tried my best to explain my thought process when writing this chapter. if this doesn’t make sense i apologise, but feel free to shoot any questions in the comments (^^’)

The Professors duo barged into Burnet’s office. Kukui took a good look around — it’s been a while since he'd last been here. 

Everything was still about the same. Bookshelves lined up against the prestigious white walls, a golden rimmed table sitting innocently in the middle of the room, the windows adorned with intricate gold patterns... what stood out to him most, however, were the picture frames on a nearby counter. Kukui walked over curiously while Burnet shuffled to get her devices. 

Three frames were lined up neatly on the counter. The first one had a typical mahogany frame, the picture showing a group photo of their old research team. He had to grin when he spotted Burnet, only 23. Kukui himself stood behind Burnet, flashing a peace sign with a large grin. 

The second frame was white and gold, just like the rest of the room. The picture showed Lusamine, Wicke and Burnet, dressed in casual wear and grinning widely at the camera. That shocked Kukui quite a bit — it wasn’t every day you saw Lusamine wearing a t-shirt and jeans. It looked as if the three were at the mall. Kukui had to make a wild guess and assume that it was Faba taking the photo. 

He chuckled and moved on to the last photo. The frame was silver and navy, and it even had a sparkle to it. Kukui took a glance at the photograph, breath catching. 

It was of him and Burnet, Munchlax in the background. It was their last day as a research team, so the two had decided to hang out on the beach. Halfway through, Kukui pulled out his phone, saying he had to 'document the memory.'

It was, admittedly, a gorgeous photo, with the sunset reflecting off the waves in the background and everything. Black and gold eyes stared up at the camera, carefree smiles plastered on their faces.

A rather loud bang cut him out of his thoughts. He turned around, seeing Burnet holding a large monitor, a computer and a device he didn’t recognise. She set them down and wiped her forehead before grinning at him, sending him a thumbs up. 

“Got the stuff!” The woman cheered. She walked over to where he was, taking notice of the photos he had been looking at. “Oh, these old things. Did you know that we forced Faba to take this photo for us? Lusamine had to threaten him, his job was at stake,” she said, giggling as she pointed to the specific photo. 

“Yeah?” Kukui asked, still staring at the photo of just the two of them. “Hm. I didn’t know you got this one printed out, let alone framed.” Burnet glanced at it before her eyes widened. 

“O-oh! Yeah, I did. It’s a really, um... a really nice memory. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so relaxed. The good ol’ days of our youth, hm?” She laughed, cheeks painted red. Kukui snorted.

“ _Good ol’ days of our youth?_ Burnet, you’re 26.” She huffed at him, poking his chest with a finger. 

“Hey, shush! Don’t you know it’s rude to point out a woman’s age?”

“Oh, my bad,” he said mockingly, “how can I make up for it?” She glared at him and tutted sharply. 

“Silly. Come on, let’s go analyse this rock!” Burnet held up the indigo rock in her hand, an excited glint in her eyes. Kukui recognised that look — it was the look she always got when she was doing something she loved. In this case, it was her passion for science. 

“If you say so. We’re gonna analyse that rock quicker than a Quick Attack!” He cheered. She rolled her amber eyes, though the smile never left her face. 

* * *

So, maybe analysing a rock isn’t as easy as either Professors anticipated it to be. 

You’d think, with the combined knowledge Burnet had on Ultra Beasts and the knowledge Kukui had on Pokémon types and moves, they’d be able to figure it out sooner. But no, it’s been an hour, and neither of them were any closer to understanding how Nihilego’s poison worked. 

It was very frustrating, to say the least. 

“Okay, let’s revise what we’ve got so far,” Burnet said as if it wasn’t the fifth time they have gone through the list. She picked up the little slip of paper they had jotted all the information down on, smoothing it out gently. 

“We’ve established that Nihilego is a rock and poison-type Pokémon. Genderless, probably. Can manipulate rocks that seem to be filled with its own poison. Said poison includes liquids with venomous properties and neurotoxicity, which affects the nervous system.”

“This causes a person to go out of control, causes their deepest feelings to surface and become stronger. It also leads to a loss of memory and vision, along with delusion.”

Kukui rubbed his temples. He never really understood all these biological things, being much more knowledgeable on Pokémon and their battle statistics. It was hard for him to keep up. Then again, the way Burnet’s brain works was one of the things that he admired so much about her. 

“Right. And it also has the ability to fuse with a human and... connect with them on a deeper level, per say. The poison has long lasting effects, as seen with Gladion,” Kukui finished. Burnet nodded, humming frustratedly. 

“I don’t get it. If it was the poison affecting Gladion, a simple antitoxin, would’ve worked just fine. It’s something deeper than that, but there’s nothing else in this stupid poison.”

“Maybe there’s something else that we’re just missing?” Kukui tried. Burnet sighed. 

“We’ve run over twenty tests. There can’t be anything else, there just _can’t_.” Kukui smiled sympathetically, understanding her annoyance. 

“I know,” he said simply, making the woman pause and look at him. He held her gaze, keeping the gentle smile on his face. Silence ensued the room as the two professors stared at each other. 

Burnet broke away from the stare, cheeks suspiciously pink in colour. She scrolled through the data that had been collected from the last test, stroking her chin. 

Kukui was just about to open his mouth and ask if she had another test in mind when Burnet’s phone rang, the gentle melody of her ringtone breaking through the air. She sighed and glanced at the contact name before picking up, turning the phone on to speaker mode so that Kukui could listen in. 

“Hey, Lusamine,” Burnet said casually. Kukui could almost see the woman’s frown. 

“Burnet, how’s it going?” Came the voice from the speaker. Burnet sighed again, the corner of her lips turning down. 

“Nothing new has been found yet. I... I’m running out of ideas, honestly.” Another voice crackled through the speaker, the two recognising this one as Wicke’s. 

“Don’t worry! Something will be discovered eventually!” She said. Burnet had to smile at the optimism. 

“I hope so too. Lusamine, mind giving me an update on Gladion’s condition?” 

This time, it was Lusamine’s turn to sigh. “He’s hooked on some antitoxins right now. Gladion’s still unconscious, by the way. They’re giving him water and some vitamins too. Oh, and if you were wondering, Ash and Lillie are asleep, Professor Kukui.” 

“Really? How are they?” Kukui asked, finally speaking up in the conversation. Lusamine chuckled, and the professors could hear the fondness in her tone. 

“I won’t lie, they’re not at their best right now. But neither of them are losing hope any time soon.” Kukui had to smile at that. 

“I see,” he whispered, his heart bursting with affection for the students he had always seen as his own kids. 

“I’ll leave you two to continue your research now. Good luck.” With those final words, the call ended, and Burnet put down the phone. Kukui was surprised to see her frown being replaced with a thoughtful expression. 

“What is it?” He asked cautiously. She hummed, shaking her head. 

“Lusamine said that they’ve given him antitoxins, right? So that should get rid of the poisonous properties. But we both know there’s something else. I wonder if... if there’s a missing chemical. Something missing in this equation. Something that ties their solution together.”

Kukui raised an eyebrow. “What’re you saying, Burnet?” Her amber eyes sharpened as she pressed her lips together tightly. 

“We know that Nihilego’s poison has a way of... strengthening your feelings. Feelings of hatred and anger, which causes a person to go out of control,” Burnet said slowly like she was afraid she’d lose her train of thought if she spoke any faster. “So in order to counter that, we need something positive. Like a positive to battle the negative. Something that makes the person feel better...”

She snapped her fingers, grabbing a pen hurriedly. “I need to write this down,” she muttered as she quickly jotted down a few notes. 

Kukui looked over her shoulder and frowned confusedly. 

“Uh, what’s that supposed to mean?” He asked. She looked up, laughing sheepishly. 

“Oh, just me and my silly thoughts. Um... I was just thinking... y’see, Gladion's acting like he's drunk, isn't he?” 

Kukui thought about it for a moment. The heightened emotions, the vision and memory loss, the uncontrolled actions... he supposed it made sense. 

“Nihilego's toxins are like drunk thoughts, forcing him to behave a certain way. You know, in those television shows, there's always an angel and a devil speaking to the person, voicing out their good and bad thoughts. It's a key factor to how the person acts. and...” she trailed off embarrassedly, shaking her head. “Never mind, it’s stupid.”

“What? No it’s not! You might actually be on to something here, Burnet. Tell me what it is!” Kukui said. The white-haired Professor smiled tentatively before nodding. 

“Right, okay. To put it in simple terms. Nihilego’s toxins are the devils, the ones causing Gladion to go out of hand. So to counter that, we simply need the angels. The ones to reason with him, cut through the haziness in his mind or whatever. We need him to 'sober up'. Does that make sense?” 

Kukui tried his best not to let his confusion show. “Uh... so what exactly causes a person to 'sober up', like you said?"

Burnet laughed awkwardly. “That’s... the part I haven’t figured out yet.”

Humming softly, Kukui pulled out his phone, quickly typing in a few words into the search bar. Burnet leaned over to see what he was reading. 

“It says here that a key factor in becoming sober is to shock the person into reality, like using cold showers, though the shock might cause the person to lose consciousness.”

“That's right," Burnet said, nodding along. "But with how hyper-aware Gladion is, I'm not sure dumping a bucket of ice on him is going to do much."

“So, we just need something that's even more shocking than cold temperatures! Great!” Kukui said. They were finally getting somewhere! “Got any idea on what to do?”

Burnet flushed and looked down, making him raise an eyebrow. Had he said something wrong? “Um... yes, though it might not be plausible.”

“What is it?” He asked urgently, “you never know until you try.” She didn’t answer, seemingly going through an internal debate. 

“Hey, I won’t laugh if it sounds stupid. This could be that missing chemical in the equation. You can tell me,” he said gently, reaching forward to grasp her hand in his, squeezing it gently as a form of comfort. 

Burnet looked up, looking at him dead in the eye with the most serious expression even on her face so far that night. “This might be a little surprising.”

“Yeah? What is it?” He asked nervously, quite aware of the fact that her face seemed to be getting closer and closer. 

“I have something in mind, but I think it’s best that I show you.” And with those words, Burnet closed the gap between them, and—

_Holy shit._

Kukui automatically reached forward, grabbing Burnet’s waist and pulling her closer. His heart thumped wildly against his bare chest, a smile appearing on his face uncontrollably. He felt a hand squeeze his shoulder and he couldn’t help but deepen the kiss. 

She pulled away after a while, staring at him bashfully. “How’s that for shocking?” Burnet asked, cheeks tinged with red. 

Kukui stared back, a positively lovestruck expression on his face before he started laughing. Burnet seemed to brighten up at his reaction, letting out a relieved sigh before joining his giggle-fest. 

The woman he was holding in his arms was so goddamn beautiful and silly and cheesy all at once, he’d be damned if he had anyone else. 

“Yeah, I think that works pretty well. And I didn't faint, so that's a plus,” he replied, grinning widely. She snickered, the two doubling over with laughter all over again. 

Arceus, he loves this woman. 

* * *

“Pikapi… pikapi!”

Ash wrinkled his nose, feeling something soft tickle his face. His eyes fluttered open, and they were met with a sea of yellow fur that he recognised instantly. 

“Hey, buddy,” Ash mumbled groggily, taking in his surroundings. He tried to sit up, only to realise that he was already sitting. The raven trainer looked around confusedly before his eyes landed on the boy in front of him, lying on a bed, pale skin contrasting with his black clothes. 

The memories came rushing back at full force. Their adventures in the Ultra Deep Sea, the whole fainting incident, hurrying to the hospital, how they almost kissed back in the room in the mansion…

Ash flushed, unable to tear his gaze away from the boy. He’d be lying if he said that he didn’t want to kiss Gladion back then in the room. With the atmosphere, the dim lights, the pretty night sky, how close they were…

Really, damn you, Nihilego.

A knock on the door made both him and Pikachu glance up. “Uh, yes?” He called unsurely. 

The door slid open, revealing a nurse — Selene, was it? She adjusted her glasses, smiling kindly at the boy. “Alola. Have you been awake this whole time?”

“N-no. I just woke up from a short nap, miss,” Ash replied, watching her warily as she approached Gladion on the other side of the bed. Pikachu’s cheeks sparked threateningly, apparently sensing Ash’s discomfort. 

“Don’t worry, I’m just here to check on him and monitor his heartbeat for a while,” Selene said, chuckling softly. Ash relaxed, leaning back in his chair. 

“I’m also here to treat that cut on your hand. Was it done by a Pokémon?”

“Yeah, a Hakamo-o. But it’s just a scratch. No big deal.”

“It will get infected, though,” Selene said, tutting. “Give me a moment, I’ll go over in a sec.”

“Oh,” he replied lamely. She hummed, pressing a few buttons on a machine. A few seconds later, a steady ‘beep… beep… beep…’ filled the room. After that, she grabbed something from a nearby first-aid kit, walking over to him. 

“It wasn’t a Pokémon that did all this, was it? Not a normal one, anyway,” Selene said. Ash shared an alarmed look with Pikachu before looking back up, trying to keep his expression as passive as possible. 

“What’re you talking about?” He asked, gesturing to his cut with his free hand, “of course it was a Pokémon. I already said it's a Hakamo-o. What else would it be?”

“No, I’m not talking about your scratch, I’m talking about Gladion here… even if it was a Pokémon that’s affecting him, it’s not from this world.” She finished cleaning his cut and bandaged it carefully before looking at him dead in the eye. ”If it was, we’d be able to cure him instantly. We’ve had countless different cases involving poison and psychic-types. I’d recognise it if it was the work of Pokémon, whether it’s native to Alola or not.”

“Well.” Ash sighed defeatedly. “I’m not sure what it is, honestly. All I know is… is that it's bad. Really bad. It brings misfortune to everyone; it should not exist in this world.” The memory of his and Gladion’s conversation about Ultra Beasts on Ten Carat Hill hit him at full force. His eyes drifted to Gladion laying on the bed again, throat tightening at the sight. 

Selene pursued her lips before a small smile appeared on her face. “I see. Let me ask, is he of importance to you?” She asked, gesturing to the blonde. Ash raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. 

“Of course, I wouldn’t be sitting here waiting for him to wake up if he wasn’t. After all, Gladion’s my…” he found himself trailing off. _What were they?_

Were they friends? Ash would hope so, seeing everything that happened with Nihilego. But then again, Gladion had never truly established their friendship with him. 

“...my rival. And my best friend’s brother. I care for him in that way,” Ash said dejectedly, feeling Pikachu shift in his lap. 

Selene adjusted her glasses again. “It seems to me you care about him much more than that. But it’s not my place to say anything.” Before Ash could ask her about it, she brushed her uniform, clicking her tongue. “I best be going. If anything happens, ring the bell, alright?”

With those parting words, Selene waved and left the room, leaving Ash to his own thoughts.

* * *

When the two professors entered the waiting room where everyone was, Wicke wasn't all that surprised to see them holding hands tightly. 

"They're both asleep," Wicke whispered, gesturing to the two blondes embracing each other next to her. "Am I safe to assume that things went well?"

Kukui smiled bashfully while Burnet beamed, nodding. "It didn't turn out like I'd expect it to, but I'm not complaining. Anyway, that's not why I'm here. Could you wake them up, Wicke? Kukui and I will go get Ash. We might've figured something out, but we're gonna need some confirmation." Wicke nodded, pointing to the room where Ash was.

The two of them entered the room quietly, seeing Ash stare at nothing in particular, a distant look in his eye. Their hearts ached -- for both boys. They were each fighting their internal battle that just couldn't be calmed.

"Ash?" Kukui called, and the boy's eyes snapped to him, unfocused. "Do you mind coming outside for a bit? We want to discuss something."

Ash hesitated for a fraction of a second before nodding, getting up slowly. Pikachu was sitting on his shoulder, glancing over at his trainer every now and then to make sure he didn't collapse suddenly.

They walked out of the room, where Lusamine and Lillie were awake, rubbing their eyes tiredly. "What time is it?" Lillie asked. 

"Two in the morning, just about," Burnet replied gently, seating herself on the floor in between Ash and Kukui. She looked up, taking a deep breath. "I know the events are probably still hard to talk about, but do you two mind giving us a run-down on how exactly you managed to pry Gladion away from Nihilego?"

"A Z-Move," Lillie supplied, looking at Ash carefully. He didn’t even seem like he was listening to the conversation. "Ash and Pikachu did this Z-Move that kinda looked like Gigavolt Havoc, but not really. It was a really huge electrical discharge. He called it 'Ten Million Volt Thunderbolt'."

Kukui and Burnet shared a frown. That certainly sounded interesting, but it wasn't what they were looking for. "Okay… did Gladion show any form of, I dunno, recognition when you two were there?"

"Oh, he definitely recognised us," Lillie said solemnly. "Though, he seemed to think we were his enemies. It took a lot of convincing for him to realise we weren't."

"Convincing?" Kukui and Burnet chorused. "Could you explain that bit?" Kukui asked.

Lillie seemed confused, and the professors honestly didn't blame her. Their hypothesis to what could help Gladion was a little weird and didn't make sense, but they'd try anything. "Um, I climbed up the rocks and yelled a few things to him, and he kinda… faltered? For a bit. Then Ash did the same thing and yelled that…" She hesitated, looking at Ash. He still wasn't looking at any of them.

"He yelled some stuff at my brother, and that seemed to shock him out of his state, make him remember us or whatever… I don't really know how it works." Burnet narrowed her eyes.

"So what you're essentially saying is that Ash's words shocked Gladion out of his possessed state and back into reality, per se?" Lillie nodded.

"Though, he kinda got engulfed into Nihilego straight after that. It didn't want to let him go, and that was when Ash and Pikachu used the Z-Move to get him back."

"Amazing…" Kukui whispered. "We might actually be right on this one."

"What is it?" Lusamine asked, almost desperately. 

"We were thinking about Nihilego's effect on Gladion. We hypothesised that we could bring Gladion back if we startle him into the real world, kind of like what you said, Lillie," Kukui explained. 

"But it didn't work, did it?" Ash mumbled. It was the first time he had spoken up in the conversation. His throat was hoarse, probably from the lack of water he had drank ever since they went into the Ultra Wormhole. Kukui made a note to go get him some after this.

"He didn't respond to any of our voices this time," Ash said, eyes cast down. "We couldn't get him back."

"You're right, it's probably because the same trick won't work on Nihilego twice," Burnet mused, tapping her finger on her chin. "We need something stronger, though I'm not sure what. Lusamine, does Gladion have any big fears that you know of?"

"No," Lusamine said helplessly. "I really don't know much about my own son. I'm a terrible mother."

Wicke placed a hand on her shoulder, rubbing it comfortingly. "It's alright, no use feeling guilty about it now. Master Gladion's, from what I've collected, doesn't show much fear when doing anything. He's very good at hiding what he's feeling."

"Hm…. Ash, what exactly did you tell Gladion to make him remember who he is?" Burnet asked. Ash looked up.

_“Seriously! You’re breaking my trust in you!” He snapped. “I thought you were strong enough to fight! Come on, SHOW ME THE GLADION I’VE LOVED AND TRUSTED FOR SO LONG!” He yelled, vaguely aware of Lillie’s gasp._

"Professor Burnet. If you don't mind, can I talk to Ash for a moment?" Lillie interrupted, sensing Ash's discomfort. The woman looked surprised, but she gestured for Lillie to go ahead. Lillie stood up and grabbed Ash's hand, dragging him outside the room. They stood in the corridor awkwardly with Pikachu and Snowy in their hands before the girl spoke up.

"So, you like my brother, I think we've established that, considering how you literally yelled a love confession to his face, right?" She said sharply. Ash didn't respond, too taken aback by the sudden proclamation. 

"It's just a theory, but…" she paused for a second, watching him warily, "when he wakes up, tell him how you feel. Genuinely. Say everything you've wanted to say, everything you've been holding back. If I'm right, he'll snap out of it and come back to us."

"And if Nihilego somehow engulfs him back like what happened in the Ultra Deep Sea?" Ash asked, not a fan of this plan. "I can't just hit him with a Z-Move, especially 'cause he isn't actually protected by Nihilego's form."

"Then it'll be his own battle to fight from then on." Ash opened his mouth, though Lillie held up a hand. "I know, I _know,_ I don't like it either. But in the end, it'll all come down to if Gladion really wants to return to us or not."

Ash bit his tongue bitterly. "Of course Gladion wants to come back, why wouldn't he?" He snapped, a little too defensively for his liking. Lillie gave him a sympathetic look.

"We both know how he is. But that's why we need _you_ , Ash. You have to make sure your words get through, so that he'll remember us."

"But you're his sister." Ash shifted his weight to his other feet, fiddling his shirt as he looked down the thin ass corridor. "You should be the one he'll listen to, not me."

This time, Lillie's gaze turned bittersweet. "Maybe so. But you're the one he loves."

"Gladion doesn't love me.”

The blonde stared at him dead in the eye, her gaze cutting through him as she sighed, almost like she knew something he didn't. "If that was true, he wouldn't have reacted the way he did when you yelled at him."

"...what?" Ash asked, almost like a whisper.

She hummed softly, a gentle smile on her face. "There's a reason _you_ were the only one able to get through him back in the Ultra Deep Sea."


End file.
